The works of Aristotle

JOHN M. KELLY LIBRARY

DONATED IN MEMORY OF
DR. GEORGE HEIMAN

University of
St. Michael s College, Toronto

V J8RARY

THE

WORKS OF ARISTOTLE

TRANSLATED INTO ENGLISH
UNDER THE EDITORSHIP

OF

W. D. ROSS, M.A.

FELLOW AND TUTOR OF ORIEL COLLEGE

DEPUTY PROFESSOR OF MORAL PHILOSOPHY IN THE

UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD

VOLUME VII

PROBLEMATA

BY

E. S. FORSTER

OXFORD
AT THE CLARENDON PRESS

1927

Oxford University Press

London Edinburgh Glasgow Copenhagen
New York Toronto Melbourne Capetown

Bombay Calcutta Madras Shanghai
Humphrey Milford Publisher to the UNIVERSITY

PROBLEMATA

BY

E. S. FORSTER, M.A.

Professor of Greek in the University of Sheffield
Formerly Scholar of Oriel College

IN PIAM MEMORIAM PATRIS DILECTI
MICHAELIS SEYMOUR FORSTER

B.C.L., M.A. : COLL. WINTON. ET COLL. NOV. OXON.
QUONDAM SCHOLARIS : OBIIT. ID. MAI. MDCCCCXXI.

To fivvarbv yap 17 (f>i\ia In-t^ref, ov TO KO.T afciav
yap effriv \v iraat, KaOdnep \v raf? irpos TOVJ Qeoiis
Kal TOVJ yoveis ovSels yap rrjv aiav TTOT av

Aristotle, Eth. Nic. u63 b i5.

PREFACE

THE inclusion of the Problemata in the Aristotelian
Corpus is no doubt due to the fact that Aristotle is known
to have written a work of this kind, to which reference is
made in his .genuine works and by other writers. An
examination of these references shows that some of them
can be connected with passages in the Problemata, while
others cannot ; from which it may be concluded that, while
the Problemata is not the genuine Aristotelian work, it
nevertheless contains an element derived from such a work.
It is also obviously indebted to other Aristotelian treatises,
especially those on Natural History, to the Hippocratean
writings, and to Theophrastus. The repetitions and con
tradictions which occur in the work seem to show that it
was a gradual compilation by several hands ; and, if one
may judge from the late forms of words which occur in
several passages, it did not reach its final form until some
time after the beginning of the Christian Era. Some critics
would date its completion as late as the fifth or sixth
century A.D. The doctrine throughout is Peripatetic, and
the variety of subjects treated shows the wide interests of
that school.

The text used for this translation is that of Ruelle-
Knoellinger-Klek (Leipzig, Teubner, 1922). The preface
to that edition contains a complete account of the MSS.
and a valuable bibliography. 1 Wherever any other reading
is adopted the fact is stated in the foot-notes.

1 An important contribution to the text (not mentioned in this
bibliography) is that of the late Mr. H. P. Richards in his Aristotelica
(London, Grant Richards, 1915). This only came into my hands after
I had completed the first draft of my translation ; it confirmed in
several passages conclusions at which I had arrived independently.

viii PREFACE

Professor W. D. Ross has been good enough to read the
translation both in MS. and in proof; a small part of the
debt which I owe him is indicated in the foot-notes, but
there are innumerable other passages in which his vast
knowledge of Aristotelian usage has enabled me to intro
duce material improvements. I have also to thank Sir
Henry Hadow, D.Mus., Vice-Chancellor of the University
of Sheffield, and my colleague Mr. G. E. Linfoot, Mus.Bac.,
B.Sc., for generous assistance in elucidating the Musical
Problems.

THE UNIVERSITY, E. S. FORSTER.

SHEFFIELD,

i Feb. 1926.

BOOK

I.

859 a

II.

866 b

III.

87i a

IV.

876 a

V.

88o b

VI.

88 5 b

VII.

886 a

VIII.

887 b

IX.

88 9 b

X.

8 9 i a

XI.

8 9 8 b

XII.

9o6 a

XIII.

9 o 7 b

XIV.

9 o 9 a

XV.

9 IO b

XVI.

9 i 3 a

XVII.

9 J 5 b

XVIII.

9i6 b

XIX.

91 7 b

XX.

9 2 3 a

XXI.

9 27 a

XXII.

93 o a

XXIII.

93i a

XXIV.

93 6 a

XXV.

937 b

XXVI.

9 40 a

XXVII.

947 b

XXVIII.

949 a

XXIX.

95 o a

XXX.

953 a

XXXI.

957 a

XXXII.

9 6o a

XXXIII.

9 6i b

XXXIV.

9 6 3 b

XXXV.

9 6 4 b

XXXVI.

9 6 5 b

XXXVII.

9^5 b

XXXVIII.

g66 b

CONTENTS

Medicine.

Perspiration.

The Drinking of Wine and Drunkenness.

Sexual Intercourse.

Fatigue.

The Positions assumed in Lying down and in other

Postures.

Sympathetic Action.
Chill and Shivering.
Bruises, Scars, and Weals.
Summary of Physical Problems.
The Voice.

Things of Pleasant Odour.
Things of Unpleasant Odour.
The Effect of Locality on Temperament.
Mathematical Theory.
Inanimate Things.
Animate Things.
Literary study.
Music.

Shrubs and Vegetables.
Barley-meal, Barley-cake, &c.
Fruit.

Salt Water and the Sea.
Hot Water.
The Air.
The Winds
Fear and Courage.
Temperance and Intemperance, Continence and

Incontinence.
Justice and Injustice.
Prudence, Intelligence, and Wisdom.
The Eyes.
The Ears.
The Nose.

The Mouth and its parts.
The Effects of Touch.
The Face.
The Whole Body.
The Coloration of the Flesh.

PROBLEMATA

BOOK I
PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH MEDICINE

1 WHY is it that great excesses cause disease ? Is it because 859*
they engender excess or defect, and it is in these after all
that disease consists ?

2 But why is it that diseases can often be cured if the
patient indulges in excess of some kind ? And this is the 5
treatment used by some doctors; for they cure by the
excessive use of wine or water or salt, or by over-feeding
or starving the patient. Is it because the causes of the
disease are opposites of one another, so that each reduces
the other to the mean ?

3 Why is it that the changes of the seasons and the winds
intensify or stop diseases and bring them to a crisis and 10
engender them ? Is it because the seasons are hot and cold
and moist and dry, while diseases are due to excess of these
qualities and health to their equality ? In that case, if the
disease is due to moisture or cold, a season which has the
opposite characteristics stops it ; but if a season of the
opposite kind 1 follows, the same admixture of qualities
being caused as before intensifies the disease and kills the
patient. For this reason the seasons even cause disease in 15
healthy persons, because by their changes they destroy the
proper admixture of qualities ; for it is at the same time
improved by suitable seasons, times of life, and locali
ties. The health therefore requires careful management at
times of change. And what has been said generally as to
the effect of the seasons applies also in detail ; for changes
of winds and of age and of locality are to some extent 20
changes of season. These also therefore intensify and stop
diseases and bring them to a crisis and engender them, as

1 i, e. wet or cold.

859 a PROBLEMATA

do the seasons and the risings of certain constellations, such
as Orion and Arcturus and the Pleiads and the Dogstar, 1
since they cause 2 wind and rain and fine weather and
storms and sunshine.

25 Why ought emetics to be avoided at the changes of the 4
seasons ? Is it in order that there may be no disturbance
when the excretions 3 are being altered by such changes ?

859 b Why is it that the feet swell both of those who are 5
bilious and of those who are suffering from starvation ? Is
it in both cases the effect of wasting ? For those who are
starving waste because they do not receive any nourishment
at all, while the bilious waste because they do not derive
any benefit from the nourishment which they take.

5 Why it is that, though the diseases due to bile occur 4 in 6
the summer (the season when fevers are at their height),
acute diseases due to bile occur rather in the winter ? Is it
because, being accompanied by fever, they are acute
because they are violent, and violence is unnatural ? For
fervent inflammation is set up when certain parts of the body
] are moist, and inflammation, being due to an excess of heat,
engenders fevers. In the summer, therefore, diseases are
dry and hot, but in the winter they are moist and conse
quently acute (for they soon kill the patient), for concoction
will not take place because of the abundance of the excre
tion.

15 Why is it that the plague alone among diseases infects 7
particularly persons who come into contact with those who
are under treatment for it? Is it because it is the only
disease to which all men alike are liable, and so the plague
affects any one who is already in a low state of health ? For

1 Cp. Hippocr. de aere, &c., II (Gundermann, p. 26, 24 ff.).

2 The triple repetition of dxr/rep points to some corruption in the

text, and the clause (ocnrep Tr^fv/zarcov . . . dXeas cannot be translated.
It is probable that cocr/rep has displaced some such words as airiat
oucrai ; Theodore Gaza s version (quoted hereafter as T. G.) renders
qui flatus imbresqiie excitant, qui serenitates frigora teporesve solent
afferre.

3 For the various excretions see D A. W. Thompson s note on
H.A.&7*$.

* Reading vocr^/zdrwz (fivrav} eV T-&> 6fpi from T. G.

BOOK I. 7 859

they quickly become infected by the inflammatory matter
caused by the disease which is communicated by the patient. 20

8 Why is it that, when north winds have been prevalent
in the winter, if the spring is rainy and characterized by
south winds the summer is unhealthy with fever and oph
thalmia? 1 Is it because the summer finds the body full
of alien humours, and the earth, and any place in which 25
men dwell, becomes moist and resembles localities which
are regarded as permanently unhealthy ? The result is
that, first, ophthalmia occurs when the excretion in the
region of the head liquefies, and, secondly, fever ensues.
For it is noticeable that anything which admits of extreme 86o J
cold also admits of extreme heat, water, for example, and

a stone, of which the former boils quicker than other things,
the latter burns more. 2 As, therefore, in the air a stifling
heat occurs when it grows warm owing to its density, so
likewise in the body stifling and heat are engendered, and
heat in the body is fever and in the eyes ophthalmia.
Generally speaking the change which occurs when a warm, 5
dry summer follows immediately on a wet spring, being
violent has a deleterious effect upon the body. The effect
is still worse if the summer is rainy ; for then the sun finds
material, which it will cause to boil in the body as in the
earth and air ; the result is fever and ophthalmia. 10

9 Why is it that, if the winter is characterized by south
winds and rainy and if the spring is dry with the wind in
the north, both the spring and the summer are unhealthy ? 3
Is it because in the winter owing to the heat and moisture 15
the body assimilates its condition to that of the season, since

it must necessarily be moist and relaxed ? When the body
is in this state, the spring being cool congeals and hardens it
owing to its dry ness. The result is that women who are
pregnant run a risk of abortion in the spring because of

1 This problem is clearly derived from Hippocr. de aere, &c.,
10 ad fin. (Gundermann, p. 26, 14 ff.).

2 The sense requires TO /neV Vt, 6 fie *aet for 6 \ilv ft, TO 5e aa. This
is clearly the reading which T. G. renders, fervet etenim ilia, urit hie
vehementius.

3 The source of this problem is Hippocr. de aere, &c., 10 (Gunder
mann, p. 22, 25 ff.).

B 2

86o a PROBLEMATA

ao the inflammation and mortification caused by the dry cold,
since the necessary moisture is not secreted, and the foetus
in the womb becomes weakly and defective owing to the
excess of cold ; for children who are born at this season in
fine weather become strong and receive nourishment in
the womb. In the case of other persons because in the

25 spring the phlegm is not purged away owing to its excess
(as happens when the weather is warm), but congeals
owing to the cold when the summer and warmth succeeds,
setting up violent liquefaction, humours form in those who
are bilious and dry because their bodies lack moisture and
are naturally parched ; but these humours are slight and so

30 such people suffer from dry ophthalmia. Those on the
other hand who are phlegmatic are afflicted with sore
throats and catarrh of the lungs. Women suffer from
dysentery owing to their natural moisture and cold ; while
elderly persons are afflicted with apoplexy, when moisture
being all set free at once overcomes them and solidifies
owing to the weakness of their natural heat.

35 Why is it that, when the summer is dry and northerly 10
winds prevail and the autumn on the contrary is wet and
characterized by south winds, headaches and sore throats
and coughs occur in the ensuing winter and then terminate
86o b in phthisis ? * Is it because the winter finds a considerable
amount of matter in the body and so it is a difficult task for
it to solidify the moisture and form phlegm ? 2 Conse
quently, when moisture is engendered in the head, it causes
5 a feeling of heaviness, and if it is plenteous and cold, it
causes mortification ; but if, owing to its abundance, it does
not solidify, it flows into the nearest region of the body, 3
and thus coughs are caused and sore throats and wasting.

But why is it that if the summer and autumn are dry and n
northerly winds prevail, this weather suits those who are
10 phlegmatic, and women? 4 Is it because in both cases

1 This problem is derived from Hippocr. de acre, c., 10 (Gunder-
mann, p. 24, 29 ff.).

2 For phlegm see G. A. 725* 15 ff., and A. Platt s note.

3 i. e. the throat and chest.

4 This problem is derived from Hippocr. de aere> etc., 10 (Gunder-
mann, p. 26, 3 ff.).

BOOK I. ii 86o l

nature tends to an excess in one direction, and so the
season exerting its influence in the opposite direction
establishes an equable temperament, and they are healthy
at the time, 1 unless they themselves do anything which
harms them, and, when the winter comes on, they are not
in a moist condition, ^having heat in them with which to
resist the cold ?

12 Why is it that a dry summer and autumn in which 15
northerly winds prevail is unhealthy for those who are
bilious ? 2 Is it because their bodily condition and the
season have the same tendency and it is like adding fire to
fire ? 3 For the body becoming dry (the freshest 4 element
in it becoming evaporated) and being overheated, dry 20
ophthalmia must necessarily ensue owing to solidification; 5
but because the remaining humours are full of bile and
these become overheated, acute fevers must ensue caused
by the bile, which is undiluted, and in some cases madness,
where black bile is naturally present; for the black bile
comes to the surface as the contrary humours are dried up. 25

13 Why do they say that a change of drinking-water is
unhealthy, but not a change of air ? Is it because water
becomes nutriment, with the result that it gets into one s
system and has an effect upon one, which is not the case
with air ? Further there are many kinds of water differing 7
intrinsically from one another, but not of air ; this then 30
may also be a reason. For even when we change our
place of dwelling we continue to breathe practically the
same 8 air, but we drink different waters. It is, therefore,

1 i. e. in the summer and autumn.

2 This problem is derived from Hippocr. de aere, &c., 10 (Gunder-
mann, p. 26, 5 if.).

3 A very common phrase in Aristotle ; see Bonitz, j.z/.,and cp. below,
86i a 3i, 88o a 2i, &c.

4 yXvKvs here means sweet or fresh in the sense in which water
is fresh .

5 Reading w^n^eis for avvri^fis, the point being that the effect of
a dry summer and autumn is to reduce the liquid matter in the body.
T. G. evidently read o-u/xTi^eiy, since he renders dum humor cons umitur.

6 Reading ^oXcoSeir for ^oAwSes-. T. G. renders residuo quod bilosum
remanserit.

7 Reading Std^opa with Ap, T. G., and Bekker.

8 Reading aurw for the misprint aura).

86o b PROBLEMATA

probably a right opinion that change of drinking-water is
unhealthy.

Why is it that a change of drinking-water is more 14
35 unhealthy than a change of food ? Is it because we con
sume more water than anything else ? For water is found
in farinaceous and other foods and whatever we drink
consists mainly of water.

86i a But why is a change of water unhealthy P. 1 Is it because 15
every change also of season and of age is liable to distur
bance ? For extremities, such as beginnings and ends, are
particularly liable to disturbance. So too foods, when they
5 are different, corrupt one another ; 2 for some have only just
entered the system, while others have not yet done so.
Further, just as a varied diet is unhealthy (for the concoc
tion 3 is then disturbed and not uniform), so those who
change their drinking-water are using a varied diet in what
they drink ; and liquid nourishment has more effect than
dry food because it is greater in bulk and because the
moisture from the foods themselves forms nourishment.

10 Why does a change of drinking-water cause an increase 16
of lice in those who suffer from louse-disease ? 4 Is it because,
owing to the disturbance set up by the different water
in those who frequently change their drinking-water, the
unconcocted state of the liquid causes a moist condition,
especially in that part where the conditions are suitable ?

15 Now the brain is moist, and therefore the head is always
the moistest part of the body (as is shown by the fact that
hair grows there more than elsewhere),* and it is the
moisture of this part which generates lice. 6 This is clear

1 T. G. here renders, Sed cur cibi et aquae mulatto gravis estf
We should perhaps read Atu rt 17 {rcoi> crmW KOL TOV uSaroy) /j.fra^o\rj
vocrcofir/s |

2 The argument, which is somewhat condensed, appears to be as
follows : It is a mechanical truth that the extremities of anything
material (e.g. a plank of wood, cp. Meek. 857 a 27, &c.) are most
liable to movement ; similarly changes of seasons and of a man s age,
and alterations in diet imply a beginning and an end and are there
fore more liable to disturbance. 3 Reading <w ^10(17) Treaty (Platt).

4 For the morbus pedicularis see H. A. 556 b 27ff., and D A. W.
Thompson s note, and Pliny, N. H. xi. 39.

5 Cp. H.A. 6s8 b 2. 6 Cp. H.A. 557 b 2.

BOOK I. 16 86i a

in the case of children ; for their heads are moist and they
frequently have either running* at the nose or discharge
of blood, and persons of this age suffer particularly from
lice. 1

17 Why is it that from the rising of the Pleiads until the 20
west wind blows those who suffer from chronic diseases are
most likely to die, and the old rather than the young ? Is

it because two things are fatal to life, excess 2 and cold ?
For life is heat, whereas this season has both the above
characteristics, for it is cold, and winter is then at its height,
the subsequent season being spring. Or is it because those 25
who suffer from chronic diseases are in a similar con
dition to the old ? 3 For the occurrence of a long illness
is like premature old age, since in both the body is dry
and cold, in the one case owing to the time of life, in
the other from disease. 4 Now winter and frosts constitute
an excess of coldness and dryness ; therefore to those who 30
are in a condition where a very little will turn the scale,
winter is like fire added to fire and so causes death.

18 Why is it that in marshy districts sores on the head are
quickly cured, but those on the legs only with difficulty ? 5
Is it because the moisture, owing to the fact that it contains 35
an earthy element, is heavy, and heavy things are carried G
downwards ? Thus the upper parts of the body are cleared
out " because the impurities are carried to the lower parts,
and these become full of excretions which easily putrefy.

19 Why is it that, when a very dry summer follows after 86i b
northerly winds have prevailed in the winter and the
spring has been damp and rainy, the autumn is universally
fatal, especially to children, while in other people dysentery
and prolonged quartan fevers occur then ? 8 Is it because, 5

1 Cp. PL A. 557 b ;. 2 Cp. above, 859*2,3.

3 Cp. G. A. ;84 b 32. 4 id. 25-7.

6 This problem occurs again in xiv. 6.

6 Reading vrro^wpfl . . . vnoKf^coprjKsvai (cp. 909* 38, 39 and Bonitz,
Arist. Stud, iv, p. 401).

7 It is doubtful whether e.<Kpira can mean this. The parallel passage
909* 38 reads cuVs Trra, easily concocted , which should probably be
restored here.

8 Cp. Hippocr. tie aere. &c., 10 (Gundermann, p. 22, 18 ff.).

86i b PROBLEMATA

when there is a moderate amount of rain in the summer,
the moisture boiling within us, which collected in the damp
spring", is cooled and becomes quiescent ? If on the other
hand this does not happen, 1 children, because they are
moist and hot, are in a state of excessive boiling, because
they are not cooled ; and anything which does not as it

10 were 2 boil out in the summer, does so in the autumn. If
the excretions do not cause death immediately, but settle
round the lungs and windpipe for they collect first in the
upper part of the body, because we are warmed by the air,
for it is owing to this that ophthalmia occurs before fever
in an unhealthy summer if then, as I have said, the

15 excretions in the upper parts of the body do not imme
diately kill the patient, they descend ?> in an unconcocted
condition into the stomach ; and thus dysentery is caused,
because the moisture owing to its abundance is not dis
charged. If the dysentery ceases, quartan fevers arise
in those patients who survive ; for the sediment of the
unconcocted moisture remains very persistently in the body

20 and becomes active, just like black bile.

Why is it that, if the summer and the autumn have 20
been rainy and damp, the ensuing winter is unhealthy ? 4
Is it because the winter finds the body in a very moist
state, and also the change from great heat is violent and not

35 gradual, 5 because the autumn as well as the summer has
been hot, and so acute diseases are caused in some persons,
if they have no rarity in their bodies (for in such persons
the moist excretions tend to collect in the upper part of the
body, because these parts provide room for them, whereas
the lower parts differ in this respect) ? Those then whose

3 flesh is solid do not allow of much excretion. When there
fore the excretion in the upper parts of the body cools (as
happens in drunken persons when they grow cold), the
above-mentioned diseases are engendered. On the other

1 i. e. if there is no rain in the summer. 2 Reading olov for oaov.

3 The change from the singular dpc A>? to the plural Karapaivovo-i can
hardly stand and we should read KaTa&aivei.

4 This problem is derived from Hippocr. dfe aere, &c., lo (Gunder-
mann, p. 24, 25 ff.).

5 OVK K Trpoo-dywyfJ? is a very common Hippocratic term.

BOOK I. 20 86i b

hand when fevers are set up in persons in whose bodies there
is more rarity, the fevers caused by a large quantity of
unconcocted moisture become burning fevers, 1 because in
such people the humours are distributed more through the 35
whole body than in solid-fleshed people, and, when the
flesh is contracted by the winter-cold, the humours being
heated cause fever. For excessive heat in the whole body
is fever, and, when it is intensified by the abundance of 862*
moisture already present there, it turns into a burning
fever.

21 Why is it that when a large amount of vapour is drawn
out of the earth by the sun, the year is pestilential ? Is it 5
because it is necessarily a sign that the year is damp and
rainy and the ground is necessarily damp ? The conditions
of life will then resemble those under which people live in
a marshy district, and these are unhealthy. The body must
then have in it an abundance of excretion and so contain
unhealthy matter in the summer.

22 Why is it that those years are unhealthy in which small 10
toad-like frogs are produced in abundance ? Is it because
everything flourishes in its natural environment, and these
frogs are naturally moist and so signify that the year is
moist and damp ? Now such years are unhealthy ; for then T5
the body being moist contains abundant excretion, which is

a cause of diseases.

23 Why is it that south winds which are dry and do not
bring rain cause fever ? - Is it because they cause alien
moisture and heat 3 (for they are naturally moist and hot),
and this is what causes fever, for it is due to the combined 20
excess of moisture and heat ? When therefore south winds
blow without bringing rain, they engender this condition 4
in us, whereas, when they bring rain with them, the rain

1 Kavaos is the remittent bilious fever which is epidemic in the
Levant ; cp. Hippocr. de aere, &c. /. c., Vet. med. 15, Aphor. 1248.

2 This problem is partly identical with that of Bk. xxvi. 50. The
source is Theoph. de Ventis, 5.

3 i. e. in the body. The parallel passage 946** 5 reads

* i. e. heat and moisture.

862 a PROBLEMATA

cools us. Now south winds from the sea are also beneficial
to plants, for they are cooled by the sea before they reach
25 them ; whereas blight is due to alien moisture and heat.

Why is it that men feel heavier and weaker when the 24
wind is in the south ? l Is it because moisture becomes
abundant instead of scanty, being melted by the heat, and
moisture, which is heavy, takes the place of breath, which
30 is light ? Further, our strength is in our joints, and they are
relaxed by south winds (as is shown by the fact that things
which have been glued together creak) ; for the viscous
matter in the joints, if it hardens, prevents us from moving,
whereas, if it is too moist, it prevents us from exerting
ourselves.

Why are people more liable to fall ill in the summer, 25

35 while those who are ill are more liable to die in the winter ? 2

Is it because in the winter, owing to the fact that the hot

matter from its density becomes collected within the body

and we suffer more through the excretions which solidify

in us, if we cannot concoct them, 3 the commencement of

the disease must necessarily be violent, and being of this

862 b character it is likely to prove fatal ? In the summer on the

other hand, because the whole body is in a state of rarity

and cool and too much relaxed for great exertion, there

must necessarily be many commencements of disease owing

to fatigue and to the fact that we do not concoct all that we

5 swallow (for summer is the season of fresh fruit) ; but such

diseases are not so violent, and therefore yield easily to

treatment.

Why is it that deaths are particularly likely to occur 26
during the hundred days following each solstice? Is it
because in each case the excess of heat or cold extends
10 over this period, and excess causes disease 4 and death in
the weakly ?

1 This problem occurs again in Bk. xxiv. 42 (945* ioff.) 5 where it is
more briefly treated. The source is Theoph., op. tit.) 56.
Cp. below, chapter 2

2

3 Taking Trovovires as a nominativus penden s and reading (&a)

Cp. 859*1.

BOOK I. 27 862 1

27 Why is it that the spring and the autumn are unhealthy ?
Is it because changes are unhealthy ? l The autumn is more
unhealthy than the spring, because we are more apt to
contract disease when heat turns to cold than when cold
turns to heat, and it is in spring that cold turns to heat and 15
in autumn that heat turns to cold.

28 Why is it that illnesses are rarer in the winter than in
the summer, but more often fatal ? 2 Is it because illnesses
arise from slight causes in the summer but not in the winter ?
For in winter we are in a better condition for concoction
and at the very height of our health, 3 so that naturally
illnesses which arise from more serious causes are them- 20
selves more serious and more likely to prove fatal. We
see the same thing in athletes and generally amongst
those who are in a healthy condition ; for they either
are not afflicted with disease, or, if they are, they rapidly
succumb, for they only become ill from some serious
cause.

2 g Why is it that in the autumn and winter burning fevers 2 5
are more likely to occur when the weather is cold, while in
the summer chills are most troublesome when it is hot ? Is
it due to the fact that of the humours in man the bile is hot
and the phlegm cold? As a result, in summer the cold
matter is set free, and being diffused in the body gives rise
to chill and shivering ; in the winter, on the other hand, the 3
hot matter is overpowered by the weather and cooled.
Burning fevers are more troublesome in the winter and
autumn, because, owing to the cold, the hot matter collects
within, and the fever is within and not on the surface ; it is
natural therefore that burning fevers should occur during
this part of the year. This can be well illustrated by con- 35
trasting those who bathe in cold water and those who use
warm water in the winter ; those who w r ash in cold water,
though they feel chilled for a short time whilst they are

1 Cp. 859*9.

2 The problem of chapter 25 is here rather differently stated and
answered.

3 There is no reason with the Teubner editors to doubt the correct
ness of the reading here.

862 b PROBLEMATA

actually washing-, suffer no ill effects from the cold during

863 a the rest of the day, while those who use hot water continue

to be less able to resist the cold. For the flesh of those who

wash in cold water becomes solid, and the hot matter collects

within ; but the flesh of those who use warm water becomes

5 rare, and the hot matter is diverted to the outside of the

body. 1

In what does the virtue of a poultice consist? Would it, 30
owing to its dissolvent action, set up perspiration and
evaporation ?

How can the presence of an abscess be diagnosed ? Is it 3 1
true that, if, when hot water is poured over it, a change
takes place, there is an abscess, but none if there is no
change ?

i In what cases ought cauterization to be employed, and in 3 2
what cases the surgeon s knife ? 2 Is it true that wounds
which have large openings and do not close up quickly
ought to be cauterized, so that a scab may form ? If this is
done, there will be no festering.

In what does the virtue of a remedy for stanching blood 33
consist ? Is it because it has a drying effect and stops the
discharge of excretions without 3 making a scab or causing
J 5 decay of the flesh? If so, the wound must be free from
inflammation and likely to heal up. For if there is no dis
charge, it will be free from inflammation, and being dry it
will close up ; whereas it will not close up as long as it
is discharging moisture. Most remedies, therefore, for
stanching blood are pungent, so as to cause contraction.

When ought drugs to be employed and not the knife or 34

20 cauterization ? 4 Ought drugs to be used for the armpits

and groin ? For sores in these parts are sometimes painful

and sometimes dangerous after they are cut open. Flat

growths and those which project considerably and are

1 Some manuscripts here add a sub-title ocra /So^juara (or

Ku, or /3o7$?7jLiaTiKa Trpo/SXiy/xara) irpos lacriv.

2 See below, chapter 34.

3 The Teubner text omits avtv before
* Cp. chapter 32 above.

BOOK I. 34 86a a

situated in parts which are venous and not fleshy, should
be cauterized; but those which collect at an acute point
and are not situated in solid parts of the body should be
treated with the knife.

35 Why is it that, if one is cut with a copper instrument, 25
the wound heals more quickly than if the cut is made with
iron ? Is it because copper is smoother and so tears the
flesh and bruises the body less ? Or must we reject this
explanation, since, if iron takes a better edge, the cleavage

is easier and less painful ? Yet even so copper has a
medicinal pow r er of its own, 1 and in all things it is the
beginning that is important , 2 and so the copper, by its
immediate action 3 as soon as the cut is made, causes the 3
wound to close up.

36 Why is it that burns inflicted by copper heal more quickly
than others ? Is it because copper contains more rarity and
is less substantial, and the more solid a thing is the more
heat it contains ?

37 Is barley-gruel lighter and better for use in sickness than
that made from wheat ? For the latter commends itself to 35
some people who argue from the fact that amongst bakers 863 b
those who handle wheaten flour have a much better colour
than those who employ barley meal, 4 and furthermore that
barley is moister and that which is moister requires 5 more
concoction. But is there any reason why barley should not
have some qualities which make it more difficult of con
coction and others which make it more serviceable because

of its lightness ? For barley is not only moister than wheat, 5

1 Cp. 89o a 2; and Mir. Ausc. 834** 30, where flower of copper is
said to be prescribed for the eyes. For the preference of bronze or
copper over iron in antiquity, see Dr. R. Caton in J. H. S. xxxiv.
(1914), p. 114, who quotes the scholiast on Theocr. ii. 36.

2 Here the proverbial peyia-Tov apxn iravros (cp. Soph. EL i83 b 22,
E.N. I098 b 7, c.) is used to emphasize the importance of the
immediate application of the remedy, which is here supplied by the
copper of the surgical instrument.

3 Reading as suggested by Bekker TW ovv evdvs.

4 Cp. Bk. xxi. 24, and xxxviii. 10.

5 Ruelle s irXeovos (ouV^s) does not give the required sense. T. G.
renders concoctionem desiderat plentorem, and Sylburg s

or something similar must be read.

863 b PROBLEMATA

but it is also colder, and porridge and any other food which
is served to one who is in a fever ought to be such that it
will provide him with a little nourishment and also cool
him. Now barley-gruel has these qualities ; for, because it
is moist rather than substantial, it gives nourishment which
10 is small in bulk and at the same time has a cooling effect.

Why do purslane and salt stop inflammation of the 38
gums ? l Is it because purslane contains some moisture ?
This is seen if one chews it or if it is crushed together 2 for
some time ; for the moisture is then drawn out of it. This
glutinous matter sinks into the gum and drives out the
acidity. For that there is an affinity between the disease
15 and the remedy is shown by the acidity ; for the juice of
purslane has a certain acidity. Salt on the other hand
dissolves and draws out the acidity. Why then do lye and
soda not have this effect ? Is it because they have an
astringent instead of a dissolvent action ?

Why is it that fatigue must be cured in summer by baths, 39
20 in winter by anointing ? 3 Is anointing employed in the
latter case because of the cold and the changes which it
causes in the body ? For the fatigue must be got rid of by
heat which will warm the body, and olive-oil contains heat.
In summer, on the other hand, the body requires moisture,
because the season is then dry and chills are not to be
feared, because the natural inclination is towards heat.
A sparing diet of solid food and a liberal indulgence in
35 liquid nourishment are appropriate to the summer, the
latter being peculiar to summer, while the former is com
moner then than at other seasons ; for indulgence in drinking
is peculiar to the summer because of the dryness of the
season, but a sparing diet is found at all seasons but is more

1 This problem is repeated in Bk. vi. 9 (887 b I ff.). m/i8ia is
generally applied to a scorbutic affection of the gums, swelling of the
gums being one of the symptoms of scurvy ; this can hardly be the
meaning here, since salt would be the last thing to prescribe for
scurvy.

2 The parallel passage (887 b 3) reads a-wTc6jj for awdXaadfj. The
latter gives better sense and should be read in both passages.

3 The same problem is treated in almost identical words in Bk. v.
38 ; cp. Theophr. de Lassit., 17.

BOOK I. 39 863*

general in the summer ; for then, owing" to the weather, heat
is engendered by food.

40 Why do some drugs relax the stomach and not the
bladder, others the bladder and not the stomach ? Is it 30
true that anything which is naturally moist and full of
water, if it has medicinal properties, relaxes the bladder?
For it is there that the unconcocted moisture settles ; for
the bladder is a receptacle for any moisture which is not
concocted in the stomach ; and such moisture does not
remain there, but passes away without undergoing or
causing any change. But anything which partakes of the 35
nature of earth, if it has medicinal properties, relaxes the 864*
stomach ; for it is to the stomach that anything of an earthy
nature is carried, so that, if it has any motive power, it
causes a disturbance in the stomach.

41 Why is it that some things affect the upper part of the
stomach, hellebore for example, others the lower part, for
instance scammony, 1 while others like elaterium 2 and the 5
juice of thapsia 3 affect both parts ? Is it because some of
the drugs which affect the stomach are hot and others cold,
so that some of them, owing to their heat, as soon as they
reach the upper part of the stomach are carried thence to
the upper region of the body, 4 melting in particular 5 any
thing there G which is most alien to them and least substan
tial ; and if the drug be powerful or has been administered 10
in a dose stronger than nature can withstand, it carries these
liquefactions 7 and any excretions that there may be down
into the upper part of the stomach, and by its heat stirring
up the breath, which it engenders in great quantity, checks

1 A species of convolvulus found in Asia yielding a resinous gum.

2 A drug deriving its name from its medicinal qualities (Hippocr.
Acut. 383) ; according to Pliny (N.H. xx. I. 3) it was prepared from
the wild cucumber. Cp. also Celsus, 5, 12 ; 6, 5.

3 The Thapsia Asdepium of Linnaeus ; in large doses it was a
violent poison and was so used by Nero (Pliny, N.H. xiii. 22. 43) ;
cp. also Theoph. H. P. ix. 9. i .

4 Cp. H.A. 494*27.

5 If the text is sound, /iaXtora p.fv is here used without any corre
sponding e.

6 Reading TaKfWtv (W. D. R.) for KaKeWev.

7 rnvra, i. e. TO. aXXorpicorara KOI fjKKTTa

864 a PROBLEMATA

their progress and causes vomiting ? Drugs of a cold nature,
15 on the other hand, owing to their weight are carried down
wards before undergoing or causing any change and, borne
thence, have the same action as those which affect the upper
part of the body ; for passing thence l upwards through the
ducts and setting in motion any excretions or liquefactions
over which they prevail, they carry them with them in the
same direction. 2 Drugs which partake of both these kinds
20 and are a mixture of hot and cold, possessing both qualities,
have both these effects, and are the composite drugs which
doctors now make up.

Why is it that drugs have a purgative effect, while other 42
things, though they surpass them in bitterness and astrin-
gency and other such qualities, do not have this effect ? Is it

25 because the purgative effect is not due to these qualities but
to the fact that they are unconcocted ? For anything which,
though small in bulk, owing to its excessive heat or cold is
unconcocted and of such a nature as to overcome, and not
be overcome by, animal heat, if it is easily dissolved in

30 the two stomachs, is a drug. For when such drugs enter
the stomach and become dissolved, they are carried into the
vein by the ducts through which the food passes, and, not
being concocted but themselves prevailing, they make their
way out, carrying with them anything which gets in their
way; and this is called purging. Copper and silver and

35 the like, although they are not concocted by animal heat,
are not easily dissolved in the stomach. 3 Oil and honey
864 b and milk and other such foods have a purgative effect ; but
this depends, not on any quality which they possess, but on
quantity ; for, if they act as a purge, they only do so when
they are unconcocted owing to their quantity. For things
can be unconcocted for two reasons, either because of their
quality or because of their quantity. So none of the above-

5 mentioned foods are drugs, because they do not purge owing
to their quality. Astringency and bitterness and unpleasant
odour are characteristic of drugs, because a drug is the

1 i. e. from the lower part of the stomach.

2 i. e. cause vomiting, like the drugs which are of a hot nature.

3 And therefore do not act as drugs.

BOOK I. 42 864 1

opposite of a food ; for that which is concocted by a natural
process amalgamates with the body and is called a food ;
but that whose nature it is to refuse to be overcome l and
which enters into the veins and causes disturbance there 10
owing to its excess of heat or cold, this is of the nature of
a drug.

1-3 Why is it that pepper if taken in large quantities relaxes
the bladder, but if taken in small quantities affects the
stomach, whereas scammony 2 if taken in large quantities
relaxes the stomach, but if taken in small quantities and
when it is old affects the bladder ? Is it because each has
more effect on one part of the body ? For pepper promotes 15
urine, while scammony is purgative. Pepper therefore if
taken in large quantities is carried into the bladder and
does not dissolve in the stomach, but if taken in small
quantities it is overcome and relaxes the stomach and acts
upon it as a drug. Scammony, on the other hand, if it is
taken in large quantities, is overcome to such an extent that 20
it is dissolved, and being dissolved it becomes a drug for
the reason mentioned above ; 3 but, if it is taken in small
quantities, it is swallowed with what is drunk and passes
into the ducts and is quickly carried into the bladder before
it can cause any disturbance, and there by its own force it
carries off all the excretions and liquefactions which are on
the surface. When it is taken in large quantities, as has 25
already been remarked, owing to its strength it remains a
long time in the stomach and effects an extensive purgation
of the earthy element. 4

44 Why do some cure by cooling the same inflammations
which others bring to a head by heating them ? Surely it

is because the latter collect the inflammation by applying 30
external heat, the former by cooling the heat already
present in the body.

45 Why is it necessary to change poultices ? Is it in order
that 5 they may be more felt ? For as, in things which we

1 i. e. which is not subject to the process of concoction.

2 See note on 864 a 4. 3 Cp. ib. 29, 30.

4 Cp. 863 b 35-864* 2. 5 Reading oVco?, with Richards, for on <W.

864 b PROBLEMATA

eat, that to which we have grown accustomed no longer
35 acts as a drug but becomes a food, so poultices lose their
effect.

Why does it promote health to reduce one s diet and 46
865* increase one s exercise ? Is it because an excess of excretion
causes disease, and this occurs when we take too much
nourishment or too little exercise ?

Why is it that drugs, and bitter and evil-smelling sub- 47
stances generally, have a purgative effect? 1 Is it because
5 anything which is evil-smelling and bitter does not admit of
concoction ? Drugs therefore are bitter and evil-smelling ;
for they are drugs because, in addition to being bitter, they
do not admit of concoction and can cause motion ; and
if they are administered in too large doses, they are destruc
tive of life. But substances which are destructive of life
even if given in small quantities are not drugs but deadly
poisons. Nor again do we give the name of drugs to those

TO substances which are not purgative through their natural
qualities ; for indeed many foods have the effect of drugs,
if taken in sufficient quantity milk, for example, and
olive oil 2 and unfermented wine ; all these things, because
they are not easily concocted, have a purgative effect on
those by whom they are not easily concocted. 3 For
different things are easy or difficult of concoction to
different people ; and so the same things do not act upon

15 every one as drugs, but particular things act upon certain
people. For, generally speaking, a drug ought not only to
be difficult of concoction, but also ought to have the power
to produce movement ; just as also exercises, whether
external or internal, expel alien matter.

Why is it that sweet-smelling seeds or plants promote 48
the flow of urine ? 4 Is it because they contain heat and are

1 This chapter is largely a repetition of chapter 42 in a slightly
different form.

2 Cp. above, 864 a 36.

3 Kadnipfi Ktu Tovrois and Kadaipei KCU TOVTOVS are obviously variants
both of which have come into the text. The next sentence shows that
we should read diet TO /JLTJ dvai euVeTrro, ois ^r] eiirreTTTa Kadaipei Kal TOVTOVS.

* This problem with several additional lines is repeated in xii. 12
and xx. 16; the shorter version here given does not complete the

BOOK I. 48 86s a

easily concocted, and such things have this effect ? For the 20
heat in them causes quick digestion, 1 and their odour has
no corporeal existence ; for even strong-smelling 2 plants,
such as garlic, promote the flow of urine owing to their
heat, though their wasting effect is a still more marked
characteristic ; but sweet-smelling seeds contain heat.

49 Why is it that unclean and foul sores require to be 25
treated with dry, pungent, and astringent drugs, while
clean, healthy sores require moist, porous 3 remedies ? Is it
because something must be drawn out from unclean sores,
and it is foreign moisture which must be extracted ? Now
biting, pungent, and astringent substances have this effect,
and the dry rather than the moist. Clean sores, on the 30
other hand, only require to skin over.

50 Why is it that sexual excess is beneficial to diseases
caused by phlegm ? 4 Is it because the semen is the secre
tion of an excrement and in its nature resembles phlegm,
and so sexual intercourse is beneficial because it draws off
a quantity of phlegm-like matter ?

Is it better to give the patient nourishment at first or 35
later? 5 Ought nourishment to be given at the beginning,
so that the inflammation, when it sets in, may not find the
patient already weak ? Or ought the patient to be reduced
at once ? Or ought the following to be the treatment,
namely, that the patient should first take nourishment in
the form of draughts, since food of this kind is milder and 865**
more readily swallowed and dissolved, and it is easier for
a sick person to receive nourishment from this sort of
food ? For where G the food has first to be acted upon in

sense, and the additional matter (9O7 b 9-12, 92^23-6) should
probably be restored here.

1 AeTTTiWt is here apparently used in its technical medical sense of
digest , cp. Hippocr. Vet. Med. 16.

2 The parallel passages 9o; b 7 and 924** 21 read here ra p) ev^drj for

TU ocrjucodr;.

3 Reading navols (Monro) for /uni/ocr.

4 Cp. iv. 1 6. ra should be read for the misprint TO of the Teubner
text.

5 Apparently a new problem begins with this question.

6 Reading ov (Bussemaker) for ov.

C 2

86s b PROBLEMATA

the stomach, namely, both dissolved and heated these
5 processes cause pain to the body.

Why is it that, in order to examine urine to see if it is 5 1
concocted, one must stop the flow of urine rather than
continue to pass it ? Is it because it is a sign of concoction
if it is reddish in colour, and this is better detected if
the flow is stopped? Or is it because anything that is

10 liquid forms as it were a better mirror of its colour in
a small than in a large quantity ? For form is better
discerned in a large quantity, but colour in a small quantity,
in dew, for example, and drops of rain and tears on the
eyelids. If urine, therefore, is allowed to flow it becomes

15 greater in quantity, but, if it is checked, it takes on colour 1
more readily ; and so if it has already taken on this character 2
by concoction, this can be better observed if the flow of
urine is stopped and light thus refracted and a mirror
formed.

Why should the flesh be made rare rather than dense in 52
order to promote health ? 3 For just as a city or locality is
healthy which is open to the breezes (and this is why the

20 sea too is healthy), so a body is healthier in which the air can
circulate. For either there ought to be no excrement present
in the body or else the body ought to get rid of it as soon
as possible and ought always to be in such a condition that
it can reject the excrement as soon as it receives it, and be
in a state of motion and never at rest. For that which

25 remains stationary putrefies (standing water, for example),
and that which putrefies causes disease ; but that which is
rejected passes away before it becomes corrupt. This then
does not occur if the flesh is dense, the ducts being as it
were blocked up, but it does happen if the flesh is rare.
One ought not therefore to walk naked in the sun ; for the
flesh thereby solidifies and acquires an absolutely fleshy

30 consistency, and the body becomes moister ; for the internal
moisture remains, but the surface moisture is expelled,

1 sc. TCI xpco/xnra as the object

2 Reading with Bekker avro

3 This problem is repeated in v. 34 and is identical with the second
part of xxxvii. 3. on must be emended to dia ri. Cp. 884*26.

BOOK I. 52 86s b

a process which also takes place in meat when it is roasted
rather than boiled. Nor ought one to walk about with the
chest bare ; for then the sun draws the moisture out of the
best constructed parts of the body, which least of all require
to be deprived of it. It is rather the inner parts of the
body which should be submitted to this process ; because 35
they are remote, it is impossible to produce perspiration
from them except by violent effort, but it is easy to produce
it from the chest because it is near the surface.

53 Why is it that both cold and hot water are beneficial to
chilblains ? Is it because chilblains are caused by an excess 866
of moisture ? If so, the cold water thickens and hardens

the moisture, while the hot water causes it to evaporate and
enables the vapour to escape by rarefying the flesh.

54 Why is it that cold both causes and stops chilblains, and 5
heat both causes and stops burns ? Is the cause the same
in both cases, namely, that they cause them by setting up
liquefaction and stop them by drying them up ?

55 In fevers liquid nourishment ought to be administered
often and in small quantities. 1 For a large quantity flows
away and is wasted, but a small quantity taken frequently 10
sinks in and penetrates into the flesh. For as the rain, if it
comes down upon the earth in torrents, runs to waste, but,

if it comes down in small quantities, merely moistens the
ground ; 2 so the same thing occurs in fever patients. In
irrigation, if the water is allowed to flow gradually, the
channel sucks it up ; whereas, if the same amount of water
is allowed to flow all at once, it makes its way wherever it 15
is directed.

Next the patient ought to lie as still as possible, because
fire also obviously dies down if one does not stir it. And
he ought not to lie in a draught, because the wind stirs up
the fire, and, being fanned, it becomes great instead of
small. For this reason the patient ought to be well

1 This and the following chapter are not, strictly speaking, problems,
but descriptions of treatment. They were apparently extracted from
some medical treatise with a view to being put into the form of
problems, and this purpose was for some reason never carried out.

2 Placing a comma after povov.

866 a PROBLEMATA

wrapped up, 1 because fire is extinguished if it is not
20 allowed to draw in air ; and the garments ought not to be
removed until damp heat is present, for the fire if exposed
to the air dries up the moisture just as happens also in
nature. 2

In the case of intermittent fevers one must make prepara
tions beforehand by washing 3 the patient and applying
2 5 fomentations to his feet, and he must rest well wrapped up,
in order that there may be as much heat as possible in him
before the attack begins. For a flame will not be able to
burn where there is a great fire ; for the great fire will
absorb the little fire. Consequently a great fire must be
prepared beforehand in the body ; for fever has but little
3 fire in it, and so the great fire will absorb the little fire.

In quartan fevers 4 the patient must not be allowed to get 55
thin, and heat must be introduced and engendered in his
body. Exercises must also be employed. On the day on
which the attack is expected he must bathe himself and
avoid sleep. A heating diet is beneficial, because a quartan
35 fever is weak ; for if it were not so, it would not occur only
every fourth day. For, mark you, where there is a great
fire, a flame cannot burn ; for the great fire attracts and
866 b absorbs the little fire. For this reason it is necessary to
engender great heat in the body, because fever has but
little fire in it. The daily treatment consists in introducing 5
at one time heat and at another time moisture into the
body. Some diseases are caused by heat, others by mois
ture ; those which are caused by heat are cured by moisture,
5 and those which are due to moisture are cured by heat, for
heat dries up moisture.

1 Reading with Bonitz TrepiorfXXe oA) for TreptoreXXecr&a, cp. Kara-
KeiaQd) 1. 15) (iTToyvp-vovcrda) 1. 21.

2 i. e. it is always the nature of fire to dry up moisture.

3 Reading e/cXouoi/ra with the majority of MSS., cp. below, 1. 33.
There should be no comma after e/cXouovra.

4 This chapter is clearly another version of the last part of the
previous chapter (11. 23-30 above).

5 It appears necessary to read da-ayttv for

866 1

BOOK II

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH PERSPIRATION

1 WHY is it that perspiration is caused neither when the
breath is expanded nor when it is held in, but rather when TO
it is relaxed P 1 Is it because, when it is held in, the breath
fills out the veins and so does not allow the perspiration to
escape, just as the water in a water clock cannot escape if
you turn it off when the clock is full? 2 But when the
perspiration does come out, it does so in great abundance,
because it has gradually collected during the actual period 3
that it has been checked.

2 Why is it that the parts of the body that are immersed in 15
hot water do not perspire, even though they are themselves
hot ? 4 Is it because the water prevents liquefaction, while
perspiration is formed when matter which is not properly
attached to the flesh 5 is expelled by heat ?

3 Why is perspiration salty ? G Is it because it is caused
by movement and heat which rejects any foreign matter in 20
the process by which nourishment passes into blood and
flesh ? For such matter quickly separates, because it has
no affinity with the body, and evaporates externally. It is
salty because the sweetest and lightest part of the food is
taken up by the body, while the unsuitable and unconcocted
part is discharged. This when it is excreted below is 25
called urine, in the flesh it is sweat ; both of these are salty
for the same reason.

1 This problem is derived from Theoph. de Sud. 25, 26.

2 This comparison with the water clock was originally made by
Empedocles; cp. de Respir. 473 b 1-474*5.

:! Reading aurjy (T??) eViXij^ia (Bussemaker).

4 Cp. Theoph., op. tit. 30. This problem is cited by Athenaeus
(i. 44) as from the Physical Problems of Aristotle.

5 Omitting with C a Y a 6 /cco/Xtiei ri?K6o-d<u ; this omission is supported
by Theoph., /. <;., 6 Se tSpob? rij^is TLS e ori TO>I> olov KU

rat? crapti> orav eKKpivrjrai ia TO

6 From Theoph., op. cit. 2, 3.

866 b PROBLEMATA

Why is it that the upper parts of the body perspire 4
more freely than the lower? 1 Is it because heat rises
upwards and remains there, and this carries the moisture
30 upwards ? Or is it because breath causes sweat, and the
breath is in the upper parts of the body ? Or is it because
sweat is unconcocted moisture, and such moisture resides in
the upper parts because the process of its composition takes
place there ?

Why is it that sweat is produced most copiously if we 5
exercise the arms while we keep the other parts of the
body in the same position ? 2 Is it because we have most
35 strength in this region of the body ? For it is in this
region, which is nearest to the strongest part of us, that we
hold our breath ; and we gain strength by violent exertion,
and, having gained strength, we can hold the breath more
867 a easily. Furthermore, we feel the effect of friction more
in the arm 3 than when any other part of the body is
rubbed ; for it is by holding the breath that we get exer
cise, both when we are rubbed and when we rub.

Why is it that sweat given off from the head either has 6
no odour or less than that from the body? 4 Is it because
5 air circulates freely in the region of the head ? That the head
possesses rarity is shown by the fact that it produces hair.
And it is those regions of the body and the substances of
which they are composed through which the air does not
circulate that are malodorous. 5

Why is it that those who take athletic exercise, if they 7
wrestle after a period of rest, perspire more freely than if
10 they wrestle continuously ? 6 Is it because the sweat collects
while they are resting, and then the wrestling afterwards
brings out this sweat ? Continuous exercise, on the other
hand, dries up the sweat, just as does the heat of the sun.

1 From Theoph., op. cit. 24, somewhat amplified.

2 This chapter is Theoph., op. cit. 34, cast in problem form.

3 sc. xpi, which is inserted by Theoph., /. c.

4 This chapter is an almost verbal transcription of Theoph., op cit.
9, in problem form.

5 Cp. 908* 20 ff.

6 This problem is derived from Theoph., op. cit. 31.

BOOK II. 8 867 a

8 Why is it that one sweats more freely if one has not for
a long- time employed means to induce perspiration P 1 Is it
because sweat is not caused by moisture alone, but is also
due to the fact that the pores are opened wider and the
body becomes porous ? In those, therefore, who take no 15
measures to induce perspiration the pores become closed
up, whereas if they do take such measures the pores are
kept open.

9 Why is it that, although the sun warms those who are
naked more than those who are clothed, the latter perspire
more freely ? 2 Is it because the sun by burning causes the 20
pores to close up ? Or is it because it dries up the
moisture ? These processes are less likely to happen in
those who are clothed.

10 Why is it that the face gives off the most perspiration ? 3
Is it because the sweat can find a way out through 4 parts
which are particularly porous and moist ? Now the head 25
seems to be the source of moisture, and it is owing to the
presence of copious moisture that the hair grows ; and the
region of the head is rare and porous, and so the sweat
naturally finds a way out.

11 Why is it that one perspires most freely, not when the
heat is applied all at once or when it is gradually diminished,
but when it is gradually increased ? 5 For those who are in
vapour baths perspire under these conditions more freely
than if all the heat be applied at once. Is it because it is 30
the presence of anything in proper proportions which
produces each required effect, and so, if it produces this
effect, its presence in greater quantity will not produce

a greater effect, or will rather produce the contrary effect,
for it is because a thing is proportionate 6 that it produces
a certain effect ? For this reason then increased perspiration

1 The source of this problem is Theoph., op. cit. 22.

2 Cp. Hippocr. de acre, c. 8 (Gundermann, pp. 15, 30 ff.).

3 From Theoph., op. cit. 33 ; cp. below, chapter 17.

4 Omitting Se after dui (W.D.R).

5 Compare below, chapter 32 ; the source of both these problems is
Theoph., op. cit. 28, somewhat amplified.

6 Omitting TO after ro> with most MSS.

867 a PROBLEMATA

is not induced as the result of greater heat ; but because to
each increment of heat there answers a different proportion,
35 and that which has already produced its effect produces no
greater effect, increased perspiration is rather the result
of successive additions of heat. For it is not the same
cause which prepares the way and creates a favourable
condition for a series of effects and then begins to produce
the effect, but a different cause. So a small quantity of
heat prepares the way and predisposes the body to perspire
867 b better than a large quantity ; but another and a greater
proportion is required actually to produce the perspiration,
but this does not continue to produce the effect which it
originally produced, but must be followed by another
application of heat different again in its proportions. 1

Why does the sweat flow more freely if a scraper be 12

used than if it be allowed to remain on the body ? Is it

5 because the presence of external sweat induces cooling ? Or

is it because the external sweat forms as it were a lid over the

pores and so prevents the movement of the internal sweat ?

Why is it that rue and certain unguents give the per- 13
spiration an evil odour ? 2 Is it because things which
10 have a heavy scent, mixing with the excretory fluids, make
the odour of these still more unpleasant ?

Why do we perspire more on the back than on the front 14
of the body ? 3 Is it because in the front of the body there
is an interior region into which the moisture is drained, but
this is not the case with the back, but there the excretion of

15 moisture must be external ? (It is for the same reason that
we perspire less on the stomach than on the chest.) A further
reason is the fact that the back and hinder parts hold the
perspiration more than the front, because the latter become
more cooled than the former. (This is the reason too why

20 the armpits perspire most readily and freely ; for they are
least subject to cooling.) Further, the regions about the
back are fleshier than those in front and therefore moister ;

1 Reading rfj <ru/u/weTpi a for rrjs (rvfj-^frpias.

2 Cp. Theoph., op. cit., 10. This problem occurs again in xx. 33.

3 Cp. Theoph., op. tit., 32.

BOOK II. 14 867 b

and there is more moisture in the hinder parts, because the
marrow in the spine causes considerable humidity.

15 Why is it that we do not perspire in those parts of the 25
body on which we are lying- ? Is it because the area with
which we come into contact with anything is hot and there
fore prevents the perspiration from passing forth, for it
dries it up ? Furthermore it is compressed, and pressure
causes the blood to disperse, and, when this happens, the
part tends to become cool. This can be illustrated from
numbness, which is a condition due to cooling and is caused 3
by pressure or by a blow.

16 Why do those who are asleep perspire more freely ? ]
Is it due to the heat being driven inwards ? 2 For the heat
collects ;>J inside and expels the moisture.

17 Why is it that one perspires most freely on the face,
though it is far from being fleshy ? 4 Is it because parts 35
which are rather moist and rare perspire freely, and the
head has these characteristics ? For it possesses an abun
dance of natural moisture ; this is shown by the veins which
extend from it and the discharges which it produces and
the brain -fluid and the numerous pores. That there are
numerous pores extending outwards is shown by the
presence of the hair. The perspiration then comes not from 868 a
the lower parts of the body but from the head ; and so one
perspires most readily and freely on the forehead, for it is

the first thing below the top of the head, and moisture flows
down and not up.

18 Why is it that those who are perspiring are apt to vomit 5
if they are cooled either by water or by air ? 5 Is it because

1 This problem is more fully dealt with in chapter 28 ; the source
in both cases is Theoph., op. tit. 40.

2 The doctrine of afriTrepurrao-is of heat and cold is very common in
the Problems-, cp. 875*11, 888*35, 906*15, &c. It is a favourite
doctrine of Theophrastus ; cp. cans. pi. i. 12, 3; ii. 9, 8 ; vi. 7, 8;
de Igne, 74, &c. For di/riTrepiVracrt? in sleep cp. de Somtio 457 b 2 and
Professor Beare s note.

3 i. e. collects internally because it is driven inward by the external
cooling which takes place in sleep.

4 This problem is repeated verbally in xxvi. 2 ; cp. also above,
chapter 10 and note.

6 The source of this problem is Theoph., op. cit,, 38.

868 a PROBLEMATA

the moisture when cooled ceases to move and collects
together, whereas before it was not at rest because it was
in a state of flux ? Or is it because the breath which turns
into perspiration by being cooled as it passes out, being
cooled internally before passing out turns into moisture and
attacking the body l causes vomiting ?

10 Why is it that sweat is given off from the head and feet 19
of those who are heated more freely than from any other
part of the body ? Is it because the part which is heated
attracts the moisture to itself, and the moisture has nowhere
where it can expend itself in these regions of the body,
because they are bony, and therefore it finds its way out ?

15 Why do those who exert themselves perspire when they 20
cease to exert themselves ? 2 For since the exertion is the
cause, they ought to perspire while they are exerting them
selves. Is it because during their exertion the veins, being
inflated with breath, cause the pores to close up, whereas,
when they stop, the veins contract, and so the pores become

2 o wider and the moisture finds an easier outlet? Or is it
because during the exertion the motion expels air from the
solidified moisture and, owing to the heat caused by the
motion, the moisture becomes breath on the surface of the
body ; while on the other hand, when the exertion ceases,
the heat also stops at the same time, and then the moisture,
which we call perspiration, is generated from the condensa-

25 tion of the breath ?

Is it more necessary to induce perspiration in the summer 21
or in the winter ? ;i Is it not more necessary to do so at
a time when, unless care be taken, the body would become
too moist and in a dangerous condition ? If so, it would be
more necessary to perspire in the summer, 4 when a violent

1 We should perhaps read from Theoph., /. c., Trpoo-Treo-o^ (

CTTlKCp TOTTCO^ TTOiet.

2 Reading with Bekker orav navo-wrcu. The same subject is treated
in chapter 23 ; the source of both chapters is Theoph., op. cit., 25, 26.

3 The same subject is treated in chapter 33 ; see next note.

4 Chapter 33 shows that perspiration is less necessary in the winter,
because concoction then goes on naturally in the body, and this is also
stated in 1.31 of the present problem. It therefore appears necessary
to read titpovs here

BOOK II. 21 868 a

change takes place in the body and the excretions are not
thoroughly concocted. Again in the winter, since the body 30
is cool, it is also unnatural to perspire. It is clearly,
therefore, more necessary to induce perspiration in the
summer; for moisture of all kinds is then more apt to
putrefy and should therefore be drawn off. This was the
opinion of all the ancients and for the above reason.

22 Why is it that, although the body is in a state of continual 35
flux, and effluvia are given off from the excrements, the body

is only lightened if it perspires ? l Is it because the excre
tion in the form of effluvia is too little ? For when liquid is
transformed into air, much air is formed out of little liquid ;
for what is excreted in liquid form is more abundant. 868 b
The process of excretion, therefore, takes longer to begin,
both for the above reason 2 and because the excretion takes
place through smaller pores. Further, the viscous and
adhesive matter is expelled with the moisture, because it
mingles with it, but it cannot be expelled with the breath ; 5
and it is this thick matter in particular that causes pain.
Therefore also vomiting lightens the body more than sweat
ing, because that which is vomited, being thicker and more
substantial, carries away this viscous matter with it. Or is
there a further reason, namely, that 3 the region in which
the viscous and the adhesive matter is, is situated at a distance
in relation to the flesh (and so it is difficult to make it change
its position), but near the stomach ? For it is engendered
either in or close to it ; and therefore it is difficult to get rid 10
of it in any other way. 4

23 Why is it that one perspires less during actual exertion
than when one ceases ? r> Is it because while one is exerting
oneself one is engendering perspiration, but the process of
engendering it is only complete when the exertion is ended ?
This then is naturally the time when it is expelled from the
body in greater quantities ; for during exertion it is coming
into being, but, when the exertion is finished, it actually

1 This problem is almost verbally repeated in xxxvii. I and 2.

2 i. e. because the moisture is more abundant.

3 Reading r) KOI on, cp. 965 b 31.

4 i. e. except through the bowels. 5 Cp. above, chapter 20,

868 b PROBLEMATA

15 exists. Or is it because during- exertion the pores of the
flesh are closed, because the breath is held, but when the
pressure of the breath is relaxed the pores open again ?
Consequently one perspires less when one is holding the
breath.

Why is it that perspiration is more copious not when one 24
is running and the body is in motion, but when one stops ? l

20 Is it because the same thing happens as when flowing water
is checked by the hand or by some other means and collects
from every direction, and, when it is released, flows in
greater volume than before ; so perspiration can be stopped
by the breath like water in a water clock and also in the
bladder, which keeps the moisture within. So too, while

25 there is considerable movement, the breath is cut off inside
the body, and so the veins are distended, the moisture being
unable to find its way out. The moisture then, being cut
off, collects, and when the breath is relaxed comes all out
at once.

Why is it that, when one is drinking, one perspires less 25
if one eats something as well ? Is it because the food sucks
3 o up the moisture, as though a sponge were applied, and, just
as a stream can be stopped by blocking up its channels, so
by stopping 2 the pores through administering food it is
possible to a large extent to prevent the flowing of moisture ?

Why is that the feet of those who are nervous perspire 26

35 and not the face ? 3 For it would be more natural that the

feet should perspire only when the whole body perspires ;

for the feet are the coldest region of the body and therefore

least liable to perspire. Also in sickness physicians order

the feet in particular to be wrapped up, because they are

especially susceptible to cold and so readily give rise to

86g a cold in the rest of the body also. Is it because nervousness

does not cause a displacement of heat such as takes place

from the upper to the lower parts of the body under the

1 This problem is derived from Theoph., op. cif., 29.

2 Putting a comma after pevpaan and reading rw eVi/\a/3e7i/.

3 The source of this problem and chapter 31 is Theoph., op. cit,, 36.

BOOK II. 26 869*

influence of fear 1 (hence the relaxation of the bowels in
those who are alarmed). but an increase of heat 2 such as
is caused by anger ? For anger causes the heat round the 5
heart to boil up ; and one who is nervous is affected not by
fear or cold, but by an increase of heat. 3

27 How is it that one can become red in the face without
perspiring ? 4 Is it due to excessive warmth which results
in the heat on the surface drying up the moisture in the
face, whilst it liquefies the moisture in the feet because, 10
though less than the heat on the surface, it is more
powerful than the natural heat already existent in the feet?

28 Why is it that we perspire more when asleep than when
awake ? :> Is it because perspiration originates internally,
and the interior parts of the body are hotter, and so the
internal heat melts and expels the internal moisture? Or 15
is it because in all probability there is always something
given off from the body, but it is not apparent because
there is nothing with which it can come into contact and by
which its escape can be arrested ? That this is so is shown
by the fact that the hollow parts of the body perspire
continually.

29 Why is it that persons in vapour baths perspire more
freely when it is cold ? 7 Is it because the heat does not 20
fmd a way out, because it is surrounded by the cold, which
prevents its exit, but collects internally, and, remaining
there, dissolves the moisture in our body and engenders per
spiration from it ?

1 The distinction between (/>o/3o? and aymvin is not always kept up in
the Problems. They are distinguished here, but in b 7, 8 and 903" 12
a is (o/3o? TLS. In go^ 2 and 9o5 a 8 dywvia is said to be the result

2 dyaw fi is here described as being due to increase of heat ; in go3 a i
it is ascribed to heat rising upwards, while in 9c>3 b 1 1 it is said to
cause coldness.

3 Reading from Theoph., /. t . } Si TO p.a\\ov eKdepfMiiveardcu for Sta ro
\\ov,

4 The source of this problem is Theoph., op. cit., 37.

5 Cp. above, chapter 16 and note.

6 Reading with Bonitz, op. cit., p. 408, (?/) on.

7 Cp. above, chapter n.

869 a PROBLEMATA

Why is it that perspiration, even though it be less 3
25 profuse, is more beneficial if it be induced by running naked
rather than clothed ? 1 Is it because exertion in general is
better than non-exertion, and perspiration which is induced
by exertion is better than that which is produced without
exertion, and that which is due in a greater degree to
exertion is better than that which is due in a less degree ?
Now perspiration involves more exertion if induced by
30 running about naked : for a naked man cannot perspire at
all unless he runs with considerable energy ; whereas, if he
be clothed, owing to the heat produced by his garments,
he soon perspires although he runs only moderately fast.
Those too who run naked in the summer have a healthier
colour than those who wear garments; for just as those
35 who live in regions open to the air have a better colour than
those who live in a stifling atmosphere, 2 so too a man, when
he is as it were in a well-aired condition, acquires a better
colour than when he is stifled and surrounded by consider
able heat, as he is more likely to be when he runs clothed.
86 g b For this reason too those who sleep much have a less healthy
colour than those who sleep a moderate amount ; for a man
who is asleep is in a stifled condition.

Why is it that our feet perspire, but not our faces, when 31
5 we are in a state of nervousness, whereas under ordinary
conditions our faces perspire most and our feet least ? 3 Is
it because nervousness is a kind of fear connected with the
beginning of an action, and fear causes a cooling in the
upper part of the body ; this is also why those who are
nervous are pale-faced. 4 On the other hand they move and

10 dance their feet about, thus resembling those who are taking
exercise ; therefore they naturally perspire in those parts
which they are exercising. Also they rub their hands together
and bend and stretch themselves and keep jumping up and
can never remain still ; for they are eager for action, because
the heat within them is collected in the region of the chest,

15 which is one of the more substantial parts of the body, and

1 Cp. Theoph., op. ctt., 39, 40. 2 Cp. 865* 19-21.

3 Cp. above, chapter 26. 4 Contrast 903* 3.

BOOK II. 31 869 1

this heat and the blood rushing thence through their whole
body results in frequent and varied movement. But they
perspire most in the feet, because these are being continually
exerted, whereas the other parts of the body obtain rest in
the changes of position and movement.

32 Why is it that in a vapour bath one perspires most freely 20
not when the heat is applied all at once nor when it is
gradually diminished, but when it is gradually increased ? l
For if the heat is gradually introduced into the vapour bath,-
one perspires more freely than if the full amount were
admitted at first. Is it because heat which is great from the
beginning, finding the flesh on the surface dry, burns the 2 5
skin and bakes it hard, and the flesh when it is in this con
dition holds the perspiration within ? 3 Less heat on the other
hand tends to relax and rarefy the flesh and as it were
stimulates the internal moisture to separate itself and come
forth. This condition being established, when more heat is
gradually introduced and penetrates deep into the flesh
owing to its rarity, it vaporizes the already softened humours 3<>
and separating those which are light expels them with the
breath.

33 Is it more necessary to induce perspiration in the summer
or in the winter ? 4 In winter does not the heat collecting
within the body concoct and vaporize our internal humours,
and so, because all or most of them are expended, there is 35
no need to supply an appropriate method of expelling
them ? In the summer, on the other hand, because the flesh

is in a state of rarity, the heat escapes and our internal
humours become less concocted and therefore need to be
drawn off. For if they are allowed to remain, they putrefy
owing to the season and cause disease ; for anything that 870*
putrefies does so owing to heat that is not its own, whereas
its own natural heat causes concoction. Consequently in

1 Cp. above, chapter 1 1 and note.

2 Reading fTreiff(ppo^.i ov yap ((is ^ TO. TrvpiaTrjpia [so also Richards].
The corruption, however, is probably more serious and eTreivtyepoptvuv
perhans belongs to the previous sentence, cp. 867 a 29.

3 The sense demands oreyei for re yya.

4 Cp. above, chapter 21 and note.

8;o a PROBLEMATA

the summer the external heat prevails, and so everything
within the body tends to putrefy ; but in the winter the
5 natural heat predominates, and so the winter does not cause
putrefaction.

Why is it that, whereas perspiration is due to internal 34
heat or else to heat attacking the body from without, yet
we sometimes shiver while we perspire? Is it because,
when owing to the internal heat the perspiration is expelled
from a large area into a small space, 1 it collects 2 on the
10 surface of the body and entirely blocks up the channels
through which the heat circulates, and so shivering ensues ?
Another reason is that the flesh becomes saturated and the
heat escapes. On the other hand the external heat attacking
the flesh at first rarefies it, and then the internal natural heat
as it is given off 3 causes the shivering.

15 Why are hot sweats considered to be better than cold? 4 35
Is it because all perspiration is the rejection of some excretion,
and it is natural that a small excretion should become heated,
whereas a more abundant excretion is less likely to do so,
and so a cold sw r eat would be an indication of a copious
excretion ; consequently the disease, the presence of which

20 it indicates, is likely to last longer ?

Why is it that, although perspiration is caused by heat, 36
we perspire less in front of a large fire ? 5 Is it because,
when the body is subjected to considerable heat, the 6
humours are dissolved into vapour ; or else we do not feel
the moisture, because it makes its way out and quickly
35 dies on the surface ?

Why is it that, though the sun heats us more if we wear 37
no clothing, yet we perspire 7 more freely when we are

1 i. e. from the whole interior of the body to the surface.

2 Reading o-uo-reXXd/xevoi (agreeing with Idpwrfs supplied) for o-uo-reX-
Xo/xeVoty.

! Reading arroKpivofjifvov (W. D. R.) | the middle cnroKpiva^vov in this
sense cannot be paralleled.

4 Cp. 959 b 25 ft, and Hippocr. de Morb. i. 25.

6 Cp. Theoph., op. cit., 28. 6 Reading irvev^aTa (ra) vypd.

7 The problem here is the same as that of chapter 9 ; to give point
to the question it is therefore necessary to read idpwrfs {/zaXXoy)
yivovrai, the omission being due to the occurrence of the same word in
the line above.

BOOK II. 37 87o a

clothed ? To this we shall give the same answer as to the
last problem. 1

38 Why is it that, though brisk movements are generally
regarded as more heating than slow movements, walking 3
up a steep hill, which is a slower movement, induces more
perspiration and obstructs the breathing, as though it were
more heating than walking down hill ? 2 Is it because it is
natural for weights to be carried downwards and unnatural
for them to be carried upwards ? Consequently the nature
of the heat 3 which carries us along does not undergo any 35
strain when we are going down hill, but has to bear a con
tinual burden when we are walking up hill ; and so it grows
exceedingly hot by movement of this kind and causes more
profuse perspiration and obstructs the breath. The bending,
too, of the body involved in walking up hill contributes to 870**
prevent the free passage of the breath by obstructing it.

39 Why is it that, although more perspiration is induced by
additional clothing, it is not those who wear most clothing
that perspire most ? To this question we shall give the
same answer as we gave above. 4 5

40 Why is it that, although our bodies are drier in the
summer than in the winter, we are more disposed to
perspire in the summer ? Is it because, our bodies being
in a condition of rarity in the summer, not much natural
heat is contained in them ? This, therefore, dissolves the
humours into vapour. In the winter on the contrary, our 10
bodies being externally in a dense condition, the con
siderable amount of natural heat enclosed within does
not dissolve the humours into vapour. Moreover, in the
summer we swallow liquid in large quantities, but in small
quantities in the winter.

41 Why is it that in healthy persons spontaneous perspira
tion is not considered to be as good as that produced by 15

1 i. e. the case of a person exposed naked to the sun is parallel to
that of a person in front of a large fire.

2 Walking down hill being a brisker movement and therefore ex
hypothesi more heating.

3 f) ToC depfjiov $va-is seems merely a periphrasis for TO

4 Cp. above, chapters 36 and 37.

D 2

87o b PROBLEMATA

exertion ? Is it because exertion continually drains off the
superfluous moisture and makes the flesh drier, so that the
hollows of the pores are healthy and there is no obstruction
to the straining off of the heat ? On the other hand the
20 so-called spontaneous perspiration (which really occurs of
necessity when the natural pores are disturbed by excessive
moisture, and the heat l is not completely retained, but can
still resist and expel the moisture) is rightly regarded as
a sign of disease. For then, owing to the presence of
. 25 a more than proportionate amount of moisture, a natural
process of cooling takes place, and the flesh becoming
saturated assumes a most unhealthy condition.

Why is it that in the winter perspiration is given off less 42
freely and we do not feel the same desire to induce it,
although our bodies are moister in the winter ? Do we

30 perspire less, because in winter our humours are congealed
and solidified to a considerable extent, and are consequently
less easily dissolved ? The reason why we do not think it
necessary to induce perspiration in the winter is because
the condition in which we are is a healthy one, and any one
who induces perspiration dissolves and upsets that con
dition ; moreover, by creating in the body a condition of

35 greater rarity than it ought to have, he expels and reduces
the natural heat, so that it cannot so effectively resist the
surrounding cold ; also external moisture will more easily
burst its way into the body when the pores are rarefied by
process of perspiration.

1 Reading TO dep^ou (Sylburg).

BOOK III

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH THE DRINKING
OF WINE AND DRUNKENNESS

1 WHY is it that, though wine is hot, the drunken are g
unable to endure cold and are very readily attacked by
pleurisy and similar diseases ? l Is it because a large
quantity of moisture, if it be cooled, forms a mass of cold
and so overpowers the natural heat ? For this is similar to 5
what happens when, if a garment is soaked in cold water,
the flesh beneath it also becomes cold.

2 Why is it that it is not those who are very drunk that are
most troublesome in their cups, but those who are only
slightly intoxicated ? 2 Is it because they have neither
drunk so little that they still resemble the sober nor so 10
much that they are in the incapacitated state of those who
have drunk deep ? Further, those who are sober have
more power of judgement, while those who are very drunk
make no attempt to exercise their judgement ; but those
who are only slightly intoxicated can still exercise their
judgement because they are not very drunk, but they
exercise it badly because they are not sober, and they are
ready to despise some of their neighbours and imagine that 15
they are being slighted by others.

3 Why is it that those who drink slightly diluted wine
suffer more from the after effects than those who drink
wine absolutely unmixed ? 3 Is it because owing to its
lightness diluted wine penetrates better into more numerous
and narrower parts of the body than unmixed wine, and so
is less easy to get rid of? Or is it because those who drink
unmixed wine drink a less quantity, because it is impossible 20
to drink more, and vomit more readily ? Furthermore un-

1 This problem is more fully treated in chapter 6.

2 Cp. below, chapter 27. This probJem is referred to by Plutarch
(Quaest. Conviv. iii. 8. i) as Aristotelian.

3 Cp. chapters 14 and 22.

87i a PROBLEMATA

mixed wine, being hotter, causes concoction in other things
and in itself ; whereas watery wine has the opposite effect.

Why is the semen of drunkards generally infertile ? Is it 4
because the composition of their body has become full of
25 moisture, and the semen is fertile not when it is liquid but
when it has body and consistency ? l

Why do drunkards tremble, and more so the more they 5
drink unmixed wine ? 2 Now wine is heating ; but trembling
is chiefly due to cold, and so those who are chilled tremble

30 very much. Yet many people before now, who have taken
unmixed wine as their only form of nourishment, have been
seized with such violent trembling as to throw off those who
were trying to hold them down ; and when they wash in
hot water, they have no perception of it. Is it because
trembling is due to cooling, and cooling takes place either
when the heat is driven within by external cold, as happens

35 in winter, or when the natural heat is extinguished either
by its opposite or by lapse of time, as in old age, or by the
excess of extraneous heat which is caused in that which is
exposed to the sun or to a blazing fire ? This occurs also
in those who take unmixed wine. The wine, being hot,
87i b when on mingling with the proper heat of the body it
exceeds it in power, 3 quenches the bodily heat ; and the
heat being thus extinguished and the body cooled, trembling
ensues. But there is also another process of cooling differing
5 from all those described above ; 4 namely, 5 when the matter
whereby the heat in anything is fed, is removed, and, as
a result, the heat dies down. This can be illustrated in
the inanimate world from the lamp ; for when the oil is
expended, the light goes out ; and in living beings old age

10 and long, wasting diseases have a similar effect. For when
that which feeds the heat is removed or diminished, the
result is that the heat fails ; G for heat is fed by moisture,

1 Cp. G. A. 765 b 5. This problem is referred to as Aristotelian by
Athenaeus (x. 692 b ). 2 Cp. below, chapter 26.

3 Reading, with Bonitz and Richards, vnfpTeivr] rf} bwa^i.

4 i.e. in 871*33-8.

5 Reading <^ (W. D. R.) for 8e, and placing a colon after Kara^u^ecoy.

6 Reading exAe/Tret^ for e.<Xueiz/ with Bonitz, op. cit.> p. 408 ; cp. 1. 16
below.

BOOK III. 5 87i b

not, however, by any kind of moisture but by that which is
smooth and fat. 1 In those, therefore, who are suffering from
the diseases mentioned above and in those who are growing
old, when moisture of this kind becomes corrupted and
changed (becoming harsh and dry instead of smooth and 15
oily), as a result the heat fails. A proof of the above is
afforded by the treatment applied to those who are wasting
to death ; for, whenever they have any nourishing liquid
administered to them, the result is that their vitality 2 is
revived, which implies that their bodily dissolution is due 20
to the lack of such a substance. The same cause seems to
operate in those who drink unmixed wine. For the wine,
being warm, co-operating with the heat already naturally
present in the body, tends to use up the supply already
present in the body for the natural heat ; consequently some
drunkards become dropsical, others rheumatic, whilst in 25
others the stomach is affected. For the other humours in
them are harsh, and what they imbibe, being soft, does not
acquire consistency owing to the weakness of the natural heat.
Their heat is weak because the matter in which it is still
contained is itself weak ; like a fire fed by reeds, which, 30
because its material is weak, is weaker than a wood-fire.

6 Why is it that, though wine is hot, the drunken are
unable to endure cold and are very readily attacked by
pleurisy and similar diseases ? :! Is it because a large
quantity of moisture, if it be cooled, forms a mass of cold,
and so overpowers the natural heat ? Now the moister 35
anything is the hotter it is by nature, as is shown by the
fact that external agencies cause heat but do not cause
liquefaction ; but where there is less heat, it is clear that
either the heat or the moisture is failing too quickly, and
so, cold humours only being left, it is natural that the 872*
drunken should be colder and show the usual symptoms of
chill.

1 Reading TTI OW, suggested by Bekker, for 7rXow.

2 Reading, with Richards, TO Q>TIKUV for TO 8e OTTTKW, and omitting
the stop after (Ti<p.fiaivei.

3 A fuller treatment of the topic of chapter I ; cp. also Hippocr.
de Morb.) 26.

872 a PROBLEMATA

Why is it that children, who have a hot temperament, 7
are not fond of wine, although the Scythians and all who
are courageous are fond of wine because they have a hot
5 temperament ? Is it because the latter, though they are
hot, are also dry (for this is the natural condition of a
man), whereas children are hot and moist ? Now fondness
for drink is due to a desire for moisture ; and so their moist
condition prevents children from being thirsty, for desire
implies a lack of something.

Why is it that men are more sensitive to salty and bad 8
I0 water when they are drunk than when they are sober ? l
Is it because that which is like and similarly constituted is
unaffected by its like, but opposites are very sensitive to
opposites ? A drunken man then has sweet liquids in him
(for such seems to be the nature of wine), and so is more
1 5 sensitive to bad liquids; but the sober man has harsh and
salty liquids in him, and so, when his food becomes con
cocted, the excretory humours come to the surface and
these are unaffected by their like 2 and cause the man in
whose body they are to be similarly unaffected.

Why is it that to those who are very drunk everything 9
seems to revolve in a circle, and as soon as the wine takes
hold of them they cannot see objects at a distance, and so

20 this is used by some as a test of drunkenness ? Is it because
the vision is continually disturbed by the heat of the wine ?
It makes no difference then whether it is the vision that is
disturbed or the object seen ; for the result is the same in
producing the above-mentioned effect. And since the vision
of drunken persons is often mistaken about objects near at

35 hand, it is only natural that it should be even more so in
looking at distant objects. So the latter are not visible to
them at all, while objects near at hand are not seen in their
proper places, but appear to revolve in a circle and not to
be near or far, because, firstly, the circular motion makes it
less possible for the sight to be directed towards distant
objects ; for it is difficult to do two contrary things at the

1 Cp. below, chapter 19. 2 i. e. salty and bad water.

BOOK III. 9 872*

same time. 1 Now the movement of the sight in a straight 30
line 2 towards the distance is strong, but the circular move
ment of the vision is restricted to the area implied by its
name. For the above-mentioned reasons then the vision
does not travel to a distance. Secondly, if it could travel
to both near and distant objects, 3 it would not see them, for
the next moment the near or distant object at which it was
looking in the same direction would fail, and, if it did so, 4 35
the eye could not see it. The circular movement is due to the
natural constitution of the sight ; for it is a cone, 5 the base
of which is a circle, and, moving in this circle, the sight
always sees the same thing, 6 because it never fails, but it is 872**
deceived as to its position, because it never directs the same
glance upon it ; for just the same thing would happen
whether the object moved in relation to the eye or the eye
in relation to the object.

IO Why is it that to those who are drunk one thing at which
they are looking sometimes appears to be many? 7 Is it
because, as has already been remarked, 8 the vision is dis- 5
turbed, with the result that the same glance does not rest
on the same object for any length of time ? Now that
which is seen differently at the same time appears to exist
later in time ; for that which is seen is seen by contact with
the vision, and it is impossible for several objects to be in
contact with the same thing at the same time. But because
the intervening time, during which the vision comes into 10
contact with and passes away from the object seen, is
imperceptible, the moment during which it has been in
contact and passed away seems to be one and the same ;
and so when several glances come into contact with the
same object at the same time, the objects seen appear to be

1 i.e. the sight cannot travel simultaneously straightforward and in
a circle.

2 Reading, with Bonitz, eV evdfias (popd for frnQvpia a<po$pd.

3 Omitting TO before e-yyrs.

4 Reading dnoXd-rrov (Richards).

5 Cp. below, 9ii b 5.

6 Reading rnvro for roDro : T. G. renders rem quidem percipit eandem.
1 Cp. below, chapter 30.

8 i. e. in a 2i.

8y2 b PROBLEMATA

several, because it is impossible for the glances to be in
contact with the same l thing at the same time. 2

J 5 Why is it that those who are drunk are incapable ofn
having sexual intercourse ? 3 Is it because to do so a certain
part of the body must be in a state of greater heat than
the rest, and this is impossible in the drunken owing to
the large quantity of heat present in the whole body, for
the heat set up by the movement is extinguished by the
greater surrounding heat, because they have in them a con-

20 siderable quantity of unconcocted moisture ? Furthermore
the semen is derived from food and all food is concocted,
and those who are satiated with food are more inclined for
sexual intercourse. This is why some people say that with
a view to the sexual act one ought to take a plenteous
midday meal but a light supper, so that there may be less

25 unconcocted than concocted matter in the body.

Why is it that sweet wine and unmixed wine and mead 4 12
if drunk from time to time during a drinking bout make
men more sober ? And why do those who drink from
large vessels become less drunk ? 5 Is the reason in all
cases the same, namely the repression of heat on the
30 surface of the body ? For drunkenness takes place when
the heat is in the region of the head.

Why is it that, though that which is sweet tends to rise 13
to the surface, if any one who is already drunk takes a sweet
draught the wine which he has drunk before is concocted
and causes less discomfort ? Is it because that which is
sweet is both soothing and adhesive (which is the reason
35 why it blocks up the pores), while that which is bitter has
a roughening effect ? The latter makes it easy for the heat

1 Reading ravrov for rauru.

2 sc. and yet produce different sensations. Reading with K a xpoVoj/
for rpnn-oi/. 3 Cp. below, chapter 33.

4 There is no exact equivalent for KVMUV, which was a mixture of
wine, barley, cheese, and honey.

G This second question and the suggested solution are repeated in
chapter 25, and the two passages can be emended from one another.

Reading Kcna.Kpov<ns from 874 b 12, which gives much better sense,
because, as is shown in the next clause, sobriety depends on the heat
of the wine being kept out of the head.

BOOK III. 13 872 1

to rise, but the sweet draught keeps it in by blocking up
the pores ; and it has already been remarked l that drunken- 873*
ness is due to the upper parts of the body becoming heated.
Furthermore sweet wine is odourless, but bitter wine is not,
and any odour oppresses the head.

!4 Why is it that wine which is mixed but tends towards the
unmixed causes a worse headache the next morning than 5
entirely unmixed wine ? 2 Is it because unmixed wine is
composed of heavy particles and so does not find its way
into the pores of the head, which are narrow, but only its
power, namely its odour and heat, reaches the head ? Diluted
wine on the other hand, being mixed with water, which is
light, itself penetrates to the head and having body, as well
as much of the power of unmixed wine, is much less easily 10
concocted; for moist things are most difficult of all to
concoct, and actual substances are more difficult of concoc
tion than mere effects.

15 Why is it that those who do not take physical exercise
are better able to drink themselves into a condition of
drunkenness, and throw it off more easily, than those who
take such exercise ? Is it because those who have excre
tions and moisture in their bodies are more inclined to pass 1 5
urine ? This enables them to drink and afterwards to be
relieved of the effects, because much vinous moisture does
not remain in them. Those who take no exercise are
moist and full of excretions ; but those who do take exercise
are dry, and so the vinous moisture penetrates into their 20
body, and its impetus immediately checks the flow of urine,
and the moisture remaining afterwards behind forms a
weight in the body.

16 Why has wine the effect both of stupefying and of
driving to frenzy those who drink it ? For these are
contrary states, the frenzied being in a state of excessive
movement and the stupid in a condition of too little move
ment. Is it true, as Chaeremon says, that 25

Wine mingles with the temper of the drinker ? 3

1 i. e. in 1. 30. 2 Cp. chapters 3 and 22.

3 Fr. 16 (Nauck 2 , p. 787).

873* PROBLEMATA

It therefore has the opposite effect not on the same but
upon the unlike, just as fire dries up some things but
liquefies others, but does not have both these effects on
the same things for instance it melts ice, but hardens

30 salt. So wine, being in its nature moist, excites the slow
and makes them quicker, while it enervates the quick.
Therefore some of those who are naturally of a melancholic
temperament become entirely enervated as the result of
a drunken debauch. For just as a bath makes supple those
who have a well-knit and hard frame, while it relaxes those

35 who are supple and moisf, so wine has this effect, acting
as an internal bath.

Why is it that cabbage stops the ill effects of drinking ? 17
Is it because its juice is sweet and has a cleansing effect
(and so doctors use it to purge the bowels) , while in itself it
is cold ? This is shown by the fact that doctors use it in
cases of acute diarrhoea, boiling it thoroughly and draining
off the juice 1 and letting it cool. In those who are suffer-
5 ing from the after effects of drinking the effect of the juice
of cabbage is to draw off the internal humours, which
are vinous and unconcocted, into the stomach, whilst the
cabbage itself remains in the upper part of the stomach and
cools the body. As the body cools, the light humours are
carried into the bladder. Thus since the humours through-

10 out the body are expelled by these two methods and it
becomes cool, the ill effects of drinking naturally vanish ;
for wine is moist and hot. A further result of the humours
being drawn downwards and expelled is that breath is
thereby carried down into the body, and it is only from
there that breath can be carried from the wine into the

15 head and cause stupor and headache. But if the breath
is carried downwards and the body cooled in the manner
mentioned above, the pain of the headache is relieved. For
the headache is due to a seething and to inflammation as it
dies down ; but it is more painful than drunkenness, because
the latter drives men out of their senses, but the headache

20 causes them pain when they are in full possession of

1 Readin

BOOK III. 17 873*

their wits. Just as those who are in a fever are delirious
rather than in pain, but feel pain when they are relieved of
the fever and recover their senses ; for just the same thing 1
happens with headache and drunkenness.

18 Why is it that watery wine is more apt to cause vomiting
than water and than unmixed wine ? Is it because anything 25
that tends to rise to the surface and is unpleasant to the
taste is most likely to cause vomiting ? Now wine has the
effect of repression ; 1 while water is light and not un
pleasant, and, therefore, being light 2 it quickly penetrates
downwards, but, not being unpleasant, it does not cause
heartburn. Now excessively diluted wine is not light
enough to percolate through quickly, and because it has 3
a little wine in it, it is unpleasant ; for it disturbs the sense
of taste by setting up two kinds of movement, one pro
duced by the wine and the other by the water, both of
which make themselves felt. But the proper mixing of
wine does away with the taste of water and gives the wine

a soft taste, which makes it pleasant to drink. But watery 35
wine, being unpleasant to the taste, has a tendency to rise,
and anything which does this is apt to cause vomiting.

19 Why is it that men are more sensitive to salty and bad
water when they are drunk than when they are sober ? 3 874*
Is it because anything which has an unpleasant taste is
more perceptible to those who feel no desire, but is not
noticed by those who feel desire ? A man therefore who is

in a state of lacking something 4 resembles one who feels a
desire, and the sober man is in this condition ; whereas
the drunken man is satiated.

20 Why is it that to those who are very drunk everything 5
seems to revolve in a circle, and as soon as the wine takes
hold of them they cannot count objects at a distance, and so

1 Cp. 8;2 b 29 and note, and 8;4 b 12.

2 Omitting KOI OVK n^dey, which has clearly come in from the
previous line.

3 The same problem is discussed in chapter 8.

4 Reading eVScwr for ^Se cos with Bonitz (op. cit., p. 409) ; cp. 95o a 14,
E. N. in8 b 10, H53 a i.

PROBLEMATA

this is used by some as a test of drunkenness ? l Is it
because the vision is continually disturbed by the heat of
the wine ? The same thing then happens to those who are
drunk as when an object appears double if one puts it 2

10 close to the eye. For it makes no difference if you move
the eye instead of 15 putting the object close to it, and whether
the movement is within the eye or outside it ; for the effect
on the vision is the same in both cases. The result will be
that the object seen appears not to be at rest, and more so
if it is at a distance (for it has less hold upon the vision
when the latter is extended to a distance) ; and this near

15 movement 4 causes a still greater variation at the farthest
point to which the eye reaches ; and if the vision is moved
violently and unevenly 5 up and down, it has still less hold
upon the distant object. Now anything which is extended
to a distance moves in a circle, masts, 6 for example, and
objects suspended ; and so the same thing happens to the
vision owing to its weakness, as though it were actually
projected to a distance. It makes no difference whether it

20 is the vision which moves or the object seen ; for the effect
on the appearance of the object is the same.

Why is it that, when a quantity of wine is drunk at once, 21
the stomach becomes drier, whereas it ought to be rendered
moister by the additional liquid ? Is it because the stomach
has no action upon a large amount of liquid swallowed at
25 once, but it goes unaltered to its proper place (and the
proper place for unconcocted liquid is the bladder), whereas
the stomach acts upon a small quantity and concocts it, so
that it remains in the stomach and makes it moist ?

Why is it that those who drink wine properly diluted 22
suffer more from the after effects. than those who drink
unmixed wine ? 7 Is it because diluted wine, being light,
finds its way into more parts of the body (just as it pene-

1 The same problem is the subject of chapter 9 and the treatment
of it is partly identical.

Reading vnoOfi (rt) ns (Richards).

3 Reading /x?) (W. D. R.) for //eV.

4 i.e. the movement set up in the eye as an effect of drunkenness.

5 Reading dw>;zaA.a>s for opaXoos.

6 Reading iorol for ourroi with C a Y a . 7 Cp. chapters 3 and 14.

BOOK III. 22 874

trates into clothing), and is more difficult to expel (water 30
by itself being of a thinner consistency but easier to
expel) P 1 Or is it because the amount of unmixed wine
which is drunk is less because of the impossibility of
drinking a large quantity, and there is more liability to
vomiting? Moreover unmixed wine concocts everything
else as well as itself. 2

23 Why is it that death ensues from the drinking of un- 35
mixed wine in large quantities by one who is already in

a lean condition ? On the other hand, those who are
addicted to drinking, if they are not in a lean condition,
often become dry from drinking a large quantity at a time ;
for both wine and life 3 seem to be of the nature of hot
things, whereas death is a process of cooling. Is it because
death by drinking resembles death by hemlock, the natural
heat being gradually extinguished? But the process is
different in the two cases ; for hemlock by its coldness
congeals the moisture and heat, whereas wine by its own
heat parches up the natural heat. So just as a small fire is 5
extinguished by a large blaze and by the heat of the sun, so
too the heat in the body is extinguished by that in the
wine, if the latter surpasses it in strength.

24 Why are the drunken more easily moved to tears ? Is
it because they become hot and moist, and so they have no
command over themselves and are affected by trifling 10
causes ?

25 a (Why is it that sweet wine and unmixed wine and mead
if drunk from time to time during a drinking bout make
men more sober ? And) 4 why do those who drink from

1 This doctrine is quoted as Aristotelian by Plutarch, Quaest.
Conuiv. vi. 9. 3.

2 Omitting rauro eo-ri npoQXi-jfjLa, which is not translated by T. G.
and probably introduced a further explanation ; cp. 885 b 3 and Prantl,
op. tit., p. 354.

3 TOV tfv in the Teubner text is a misprint for TO gfjv.

* It is obvious from Trdvrav (1. 12) that several alternatives are
offered in the statement of the problem. The problem is clearly
a repetition of chapter 12 and we must restore dta ri (6 y\vK.iis KOL 6
aKparos Kal 6 KVKCMV /^era^u di(i7riv6p.evoi ev rols TroVot? vrj<f)t,v noiovaiv ;
Kai $ia rty TJTTCV ptdvcrKovTai /crA.

874 b PROBLEMATA

large vessels become less drunk ? Is the reason in all cases 1
the same, namely the repression of heat ; 2 that is to say,
on the surface of the body ? For drunkenness takes place
in the region of the head.

(Why is it that those who drink much unmixed wine fall 25 b
asleep easily?) 3 Is it because to induce sleep warm moisture

15 must be present, for it is easily concocted ? But if no moisture
is present, or 4 only a little, or moisture which is difficult of
concoction, sleep does not come on. Therefore men
become sleepiest when they are fatigued and after meat and
drink, owing to the heat. But sleeplessness afflicts the
melancholic and those who are in a high fever, 5 the former
because the moisture in them is cooled, the latter because

20 there is little or no moisture in them ; these facts must
clearly be looked to as the causes of sleeplessness in these
two 6 cases.

Why do drunkards tremble, and the more so the more 26
they drink unmixed wine ? 7 Now wine is heating, and
trembling is chiefly due to cold ; and so it is prin
cipally those who are chilled that tremble. Yet many
25 people before now who have taken unmixed wine as their
only form of nourishment, have been seized with such
violent trembling as to throw off those who were trying to
hold them down, and when they wash with hot water they
have no perception of it. Others who live in this way, 8

1 Reading 77 iravr&v for nai roav yap ; cp. 872 b 28.

2 Reading 17 KarnKpovais (TO{) 0ep/ioC>), TOVT<TTLV ; cp. 872 b 29.

3 It is clear that q on del -rrpos rovs VTTVOVS KT\. begins the solution
of a new problem the title of which has fallen out. T. G. begins this
new problem with the words, Cur innolentis somnus oriri nequeat ?
But the fact that drunkenness often induces sleep rather than prevents
it and the arguments contained in the solution point to some other
question. That inserted above seems to be the most applicable,
since, as has been already shown, unmixed wine is hot and easily
concocted.

4 Reading (q) oXi yr? (Bonitz).

5 TO IS fjiyi\as Trvpias is untranslatable and a participle appears to
have fallen out; the sense must be either that given above or else
those who indulge in strong vapour baths , which seems to be the
meaning of rrvplai in de Part. Anim. 65 i a i. T. G. renders vehementer
aestuantes. 6 Reading ea iTepov (Richards) for erfpov.

7 The same problem is treated, and partly in identical words, in
chapter 5. 8 i. e. who drink much unmixed wine.

BOOK III. 26 874 b

but also undergo massage and take meat as part of their
diet, have been stricken with apoplectic seizures ; these are
less subject to trembling, because they are unable to move, 30
but they suffer from violent pain and an inability to rest.
Trembling is clue to cooling ; for, as has been remarked, it
is those who are chilled who suffer from it and the very
old, the cause being in the former their cold condition,
in the latter their age. Wine, on the other hand, is very 35
heating ; so that it ought to have the opposite effect. Is
there any reason why the same effect should not be
produced by contraries working in a different manner?
For example, burning l is caused both by frost and by heat,
when the frost collects the heat in one place. Thus there
is a sense in which the same condition is produced 2 both by 875**
contrary causes and by the same cause. Now trembling is
due to lack of heat, not, however, of any kind of heat,
but of natural heat. Heat perishes either by dying down
or by being extinguished ; it is extinguished by its con
traries, cold and moisture, and it dies down either through 5
lack of material, as lamps do when they have no more fuel
or oil, or under the influence of external heat, as the fire
goes out in the sunlight and lamps when they are exposed
to the fire. Those then who are chilled tremble because
the heat in them is extinguished by the cold. This is why
the pouring of hot water over a person makes his hair 10
bristle ; for the cold being enclosed within and being
compressed 3 causes the hair to stand on end. The cold
ness of one who is beginning to suffer from fever is due to
a like cause. In old age the heat dies down because the
material which feeds it fails ; for moisture is the food of
heat, and old age is dry. 4 Now it is because their own J5
heat dies down that drunkards tremble and any others in
whom this effect is produced by wine ; but they do not do
so in the same way as those who tremble from old age, but
there is, as we saw, a third way in which the heat is

iv is regularly used both of burning off and of frost-bite .

2 Reading av^ftaivei (Y a ).

3 For the doctrine of airnrfpia-Taa-is cp. 867 b 32 and note.

4 Reading with Bonitz (op. cit., p. 409) r/poV for \l/vxp6v ; cp. dfe
long, et brev. mt. 466* 22, b 14. T. G. renders senectus autem sicca est.

645-26 E

875 a PROBLEMATA

destroyed. For when too much wine is taken, the heat
20 being considerable in the body * extinguishes or weakens
our own heat, in which our strength consists ; for trembling
arises w r hen the motive power loses control over that which
it moves, just as the extremity of a long and large piece of
wood trembles if one has not a good hold 2 upon it, and
this happens because either that which is being held is too
large or that which is moving it is too weak. So, when the
25 heat is extinguished (for heat appears to be the cause of
motion in animals), the natural control of the body is lost.
That this condition is induced in drunkards and the aged
by a process of cooling is proved by the fact that the
trembling is unaccompanied by chill.

Why is it that one who is slightly intoxicated is more 27
troublesome in his cups than one who is more drunk and

3 than the sober man ? ;} Is it because the sober man
exercises his judgement properly, whereas one who is quite
drunk, because his senses are blocked up, being unable to
resist the heaviness which oppresses him, cannot exercise
his judgement at all, and, this being so, he is not trouble
some in his cups ? But he who is slightly intoxicated uses
his judgement, but, owing to the wine which he has drunk,
he uses it amiss, and so is troublesome in his cups. He is

?.=> like Satyrus of Clazomenae, who was given to abuse, and
so when he was defendant in a lawsuit, in order that he
might speak to the point and not abuse his adversary, they
stopped up his ears, so that he might not hear anything
and become abusive ; but as his adversary was finishing his
speech, they uncovered his ears, and he, hearing a few
words at the end of the speech, could not restrain himself
and began to revile him, because he could use his senses

4 but could not use his judgement aright.

875 b Why is it that men do not become drunkards by being 2 8
addicted to sweet wine, which is pleasanter to the taste ?
Is it because sweet wine possesses a flavour other than

1 Putting the comma before, instead of after, eV r crco/Mart.

~ Reading eyKparcoj (Richards).

3 This problem has already been discussed in chapter 2.

BOOK III. 28 875 1

that of wine ? l He then who is addicted to sweet wine
will be a lover of what is sweet rather than of wine.

29 Why is it that drunkards take a particular delight in 5
the warmth of the sun ? 2 Is it because they need concoc
tion ? Another reason is the fact that they are cooled by
the wine ; which is also a reason why apoplectic seizures
and torpidity very readily occur after drinking.

30 Why is it that drunkards when looking at a single object
sometimes see several objects ? :] Is it because the sources 10
of vision (like the whole head) are disturbed internally
by the wine, and, this being so, the vision of the two eyes
cannot meet at the same point, but as it were moves to
different parts of the object seen ; consequently the object
appears to be two ? The same thing happens if one presses
one eye from below; 4 for this disturbs the source of its 15
vision, so that it no longer falls upon the same point as
the other eye. This then is an external disturbance, while
that caused by wine is internal ; but there is no real
difference, the effect being the same whatever the cause
of the disturbance.

31 Why is it that the tongue of those who are drunk
stumbles ? 5 Is it because, just as the whole body staggers 20
in drunkenness, so also the tongue staggers and stumbles
and cannot articulate clearly ? Or is it because the flesh
of the tongue is spongy ? It therefore becomes saturated
and swells up, and when this happens it is more difficult
to move, owing to the thickness caused by its increased
bulk, and it cannot articulate distinctly. Or is it because,
just as we cannot speak under water through lack of air, 25
so we cannot speak when we take liquid into the mouth ?
So in a state of drunkenness we cannot articulate because
the tongue is surrounded by a large quantity of moisture ;
for a stumbling speech is due to inability to articulate.
Or is it because in drunkenness the mind is affected and
stumbles? If the mind is in this condition, it is only

1 i. e. its sweetness predominates over its vinous quality.

2 Cp. chapter 32. 3 Cp. chapter 10.
4 C P- 959 a u. 5 Cp. 888 b 7-

E 2

875 b PROBLEMATA

30 natural that the tongue should suffer likewise ; for the
mind is the source of speech. This is why, apart from
drunkenness, if the mind is affected, the tongue is affected
also, as for example in those who are frightened.

Why is it that drunkards and those who have to do 32
35 with the sea delight in the sun ? l Is it because drunkards
require concoction and at the same time certain parts of
their bodies have become cooled ? This is why apoplectic
seizures and torpor follow after drinking. Those who
have to do with the sea like the sun because they live
always amid moisture.

Why is it that those who are drunk are incapable of 33
40 having sexual intercourse ? 2 Is it because to do so a certain
part of the body ought to be in a state of greater heat
8y6 a than the rest, and this is impossible in the drunken owing
to the large quantity of heat in them ; the heat therefore
caused by the movement is extinguished, being heated by
the surrounding heat? 3 Or is it because for sexual inter
course the lower parts of the body must be heated, whereas
wine naturally rises upwards and so creates heat in the
5 upper parts and withdraws it from the lower parts ? Also
people are least inclined for sexual intercourse after food
and are recommended to take a heavy midday meal and
a light supper with a view to it, for the heat and moisture
move upwards when the food is unconcocted and down
wards when it is concocted ; and the semen is formed from
concocted food. Those who are fatigued emit semen during
jo sleep, 4 because fatigue is a moist and hot condition ; if
therefore the excretion takes place in this part of the body,
the result is that semen is emitted during sleep. This also
occurs for the same reason in certain forms of illness, 5 and
likewise in those who are frightened and in the dying. 6

15 Why is it that the young wet their beds more, when 34
they are drunk, than the old ? Is it because they are hot
and moist, and so the excretion which collects is abundant,

1 Cp. above, chapter 29. 2 Cp. above, chapter n.

3 An instance of the doctrine of nvp eVi TrOp. 4 Cp. v. 3.

B Namely in phthisis ; cp. 884*6. 6 Cp. 8;; a 26 ff.

BOOK III. 34 876

because the body does not expend the moisture, and so it
overflows ; but as they become older, the body owing to
its dry ness absorbs the excess of moisture? Or is it because
the young- are more inclined to sleep than the old ? Con- 20
sequently, without their being aware of it, the flow of
urine finds its way out while they are asleep, before they
can wake up, whereas the old are aware of it, just as
they are more alive to any external movement than the
young. This is confirmed by the fact that the young
themselves wet their beds most when they are most sound 25
asleep.

35 Why is it that oil is beneficial against drunkenness and
sipping it enables one to continue drinking ? Is it because
it promotes the flow of urine and so prepares a way for
the liquor ?

876*

BOOK IV

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH SEXUAL
INTERCOURSE

WHY is it that one who is having sexual intercourse, I
and also a dying person, casts his eyes upwards, while
a sleeper casts them downwards ? Is it because the heat
going out in an upward direction makes the eyes turn
in the direction in which it is itself travelling, whereas
during sleep the heat collects in the lower part of the body
35 and so inclines the eyes downwards ? The eyes close
because there is no moisture left in them.

Why do the eyes and flanks of those who indulge too fre- 2
quently in sexual intercourse sink very noticeably, 1 though
the latter are near and the former far from the sexual organs ?
Is it because these parts co-operate very noticeably in the
effort made in the act of coition, contracting at the time
876 b of the emission of the semen ? It is from these parts then
in particular that any easily liquefied nourishment which
is present there is squeezed out by the pressure. Or is
it because these parts become overheated and waste away
most, and sexual intercourse operates through heat, and
those parts are most heated which are moved in the act
5 of coition ? Now the eyes and the parts about the buttocks
noticeably co-operate in the sexual act ; for it is impossible to
emit the semen without drawing the buttocks together and
closing 2 the eyes, for the buttocks by their contraction press
out the semen (just as the liquid can be expelled from the
bladder by the pressure of the hand), while the bringing to-
10 gether of the eyelids presses out the moisture in the brain.

1 Cp. de Gen. Anim. 747* 16.

2 Unless TO>V o(p6a\pS)j> KaraQX^devraiv here means merely closing
the eyes as is implied by crvvaya>yr) (1. 10), there will be a direct con-
tiadiction with 8;6 a 32, 33. The alternative is to emend KaTapXrjGevTuv
to ui>afi\ridevT(0i>. Platt omits p.r) as having come from the previous line.

BOOK IV. 2 876 1

That the eyes and the region near them have considerable
influence in procreation is shown by the fact that childless
and fruitful l women alike try the experiment of anointing
them, thinking that strength must pass by this way into
the semen. These two parts, the fundament and the eyes,
are always in all persons full of fatness; and, because they 15
co-operate in the act of coition, they share in the heat
which it engenders and are made lean thereby, and much
of their substance is excreted into the semen. For unless
a part of the body is fat, the heat will not melt it properly,
nor will it do so if the part is fat but does not co-operate
in the sexual act, as is the case with the stomach. (The
kidneys, however, have more sensation in sexual intercourse 20
than other parts of the body because of their nearness to
the organs employed.) Moreover, the mere passage of
the semen through these parts, which is quite perceptible
by these parts, is sufficient to make them lean ; for its
proximity takes away something without adding anything
to them.

3 Why is it that both those who indulge in sexual excess
and eunuchs, who never do so, alike 2 lose their sharpness 25
of vision ? Is it because in the former owing to their
desire, and in the latter owing to their mutilation, the
upper parts of the body become drier than they ought
to be, and this is most noticeable in those organs which
have delicate work to do, such as the eye ? So when
the moisture is drawn away downwards, the upper parts
become dry. It is quite obvious that sexual intercourse 30
has this effect. In eunuchs the legs swell and the bowels
are easily relaxed, which shows that the moisture has
moved downwards.

4 Why is it that man alone grows hair on the face and
body when he begins to be capable of sexual intercourse,
whereas this does not happen in the other animals which
have hair ? Is it because on coming to maturity the
characteristics of animals change to their opposites ? For 35

1 ayuvwv should perhaps be read for
- Reading 6/MotW with some MSS.

876 b PROBLEMATA

the voice becomes deep instead of shrill, and they become
hairy instead of bare; it is clear therefore that animals
which are hirsute from birth ought to become bare and
not continue to be hirsute when they begin to secrete
semen. But this is not so, because animals which emit
877* semen become drier and rarer, conditions which are favour
able to the growth of hair. This is shown by the fact
that hair does not grow on scars, for scars are of a close
texture and not rare; nor does hair grow upon women
and children, both of whom are moist and not dry.

5 Why is it that having the feet bare is prejudicial to 5
sexual intercourse ? Is it because the body, when it is
about to have sexual intercourse, ought to be warm and
moist internally ? This condition is attained during sleep
rather than when one is awake ; and so emission of semen
takes place readily and without effort during sleep, but
requires exertion in those who are awake. When the

TO body is moist and warm, the feet are even more so; as
is shown by the fact that the feet of those who are asleep
are warm, being in this condition simultaneously with the
interior of the body. But bareness of the feet has the
opposite effect of causing dryness and cold. So since it
is either difficult or impossible to have sexual intercourse
when the feet are not warm, bareness of the feet must

15 necessarily be prejudicial to the performance of the
sexual act.

Why is it that man is more languid after sexual inter- 6
course than any other animal ? Is it because in proportion
to his bulk he emits more semen than any other animal ?
But why does he do so ? Is it because man digests his
food with less effort and is naturally moister and hotter
20 than all the other animals ? His moistness then creates
an abundance of semen, while his heat creates a natural
condition favourable to it ; for the semen must be moist
and hot as long as it is kept in the body.

Why is it that, whereas sexual intercourse takes place 7
by means of heat, and fear and death have a cooling effect,
25 yet semen is sometimes emitted by those who are frightened

BOOK IV. 7 877*

and by the dying ? l Is it because, though some parts are
cooled, others become somewhat warmed, since they already
have their own heat and receive additional heat from the
parts which are cooling ? So that, though such persons are
growing cold, the emission of semen is due not to cooling
but to the simultaneous heating. Observation proves this
to be so in those who are frightened ; for the blood leaves 3
the upper parts of the body, and the lower parts become
moist, and the bowels and bladder are relaxed. Thus under
the influence of fright the heat makes its way downwards,
and at death it travels upwards from below, and, because
it creates a state of moisture by its warmth, it causes the
emission of semen.

8 Why is it that one ought not to have sexual intercourse 35
or vomit or sneeze or emit a deep breath, unless one is
in a turgid state ? Is it because if we are not in a turgid
state, we are in the condition of plants torn up from the
earth with which something which does not belong to
them is torn up also, or of which some part is torn off and
left in the ground ? Now anything which ought to be
removed, but of which a part is detached and remains 877 b
behind, will cause trouble for a long while. And if one
disturbs something external to oneself, this will cause
trouble, because it is not in its proper place ; and this is
what will happen if we do any of the above-mentioned
things when we are not in a turgid state.

9 Why is it that one can have sexual intercourse more 5
readily when fasting ? Is it because the ducts of the body
are emptier in those who are fasting and full in those who
are full ? In the latter case they prevent the moisture
from passing through into the semen. This is seen to be
the case with the bladder ; for when it is full it is impossible
to have sexual intercourse readily. 2

10 Why is it that the young, when they first begin to have ro
sexual intercourse, feel loathing after the act for those with
whom they have had intercourse ? Is it due to the fact

1 Cp. 876*13. 2 Cp. 878*33-5.

877 b PROBLEMATA

that the change caused in them is great? For they are
only conscious of the ensuing feeling of discomfort, and so
avoid those with whom they have had intercourse as being
the cause of this feeling.

1 5 Why is it that those who are continually on horseback n
are more inclined for sexual intercourse? Is it because
owing to the heat and movement they are in the same
condition as during sexual intercourse ? So as growth
takes place with increasing age in the region of the genital
organs, these parts become enlarged. Since then they
are always in this state of movement, their bodies become
open-pored and in a condition which disposes them for

20 sexual intercourse.

Why is it that when sexual powers begin to be present 12
the flesh has an unpleasant odour which is not present in
men or women before puberty ? 1 Is it because uncon-
cocted matter always has a worse taste being more acid
or salty or bitter and a more unpleasant odour, while
concocted matter has a pleasant, or less unpleasant, taste

25 and a more agreeable, or less disagreeable, odour? This
is clear from an observation of the whole vegetable and
animal world. If the properly concocted matter is re
moved, that which is left is unconcocted, for instance in
ashes, the sweet portion having been consumed, the dust
which remains is bitter, and similarly perspiration is salty.

30 Now the natural heat concocts the semen, which though
small in amount is very strong, being a large quantity in
a concentrated form. 2 When, therefore, it leaves the body,
the latter usually becomes languid and cold ; and so the
juices in it are subject to less concoction, since the pores
are opened owing to the excretion of the semen. Conse-

35 quently the perspiration of adults is saltier and has a more
unpleasant odour than that of children, because it is uncon
cocted ; and if their natural condition is such that the
residue 3 of their perspiration has an unpleasant odour,

1 Cp. below, chapter 24, and Theoph. de Odoribus, 7.

2 i. e. the semen, though small in quantity, is concocted from a
large amount of nourishment, cp. 879 a 9, 10.

3 i. e. what is left when the moisture in the perspiration has
evaporated.

BOOK IV. 12 877 1

it is still more evident in such persons, and particularly l in
those parts, such as the armpit, 2 in which it is especially
evident in other people also.

13 Why is it that we regard the creature which is born 3 878*
from our own semen as our offspring, while that which is
produced from any other part of us or from any other
excretion is not looked upon as our own? For many
things are produced by putrefaction, even from semen.
Why then is that which resembles us claimed as our own,
while that which is alien to us is not so considered ? For 5
either all or none ought to belong to us. Is the reason
that, in the first place, what is produced from the semen is
born from what is our own, but that which is produced
otherwise originates from something which is not ours,
namely, from what is purged or excreted from us ? In
a word, nothing in a creature procreates another creature
except the semen ; and that which is harmful and evil, and
also that which is alien, is not claimed by anything as its I0
own ; for it is not the same thing to be part of a thing and
to be alien to it and other than it and evil. Now our
excretions and putrefactions are not our own but are other
than us and alien to our nature. For all things that grow
in the body must not be considered as belonging to the
body, for even boils grow on it and these are removed and
cast forth. In a word, all things that are contrary to nature 15
are alien to the body, and many of the things that grow
there are contrary to nature. If therefore the semen is the
only thing in us from which a creature can be born, we
should be right in regarding as our own offspring that
only which is produced from the semen. Moreover any
thing else which is produced from the semen, as for instance,
when it putrefies, a worm, or the so-called monstrosities, 2 o
when there is corruption in the womb, are not to be
reckoned as offspring. In a word, anything which is pro
duced from corruption is no longer produced from that
which is our own but from that which is alien to us, like

1 The Teubner text wrongly prints /uaXtcrrai for /uaXiora.

2 Cp. 867^19.

3 The Teubner text wrongly prints yevrjra for

878 a PROBLEMATA

that which is generated from excretions such as ordure.
That all such things are produced from corruption is

25 proved by the fact that what is generated from uncorrupted
semen is of such a nature as to resemble that from which
the semen came, a horse being born from a horse and a man
from a man. And l we do not value the semen in itself or
everything that is being completed in the process of coming
into being (for it is sometimes moisture and a mere mass

30 and flesh which is coming into being), 2 because it has not
yet its true nature but only so much of its nature as is
implied in the fact that it is so disposed as to produce some
thing resembling ourselves ; and nothing even of this kind
can be produced from corrupted semen. For these reasons
we do not regard as our offspring that which is produced
either from anything else in us except the semen, or
from the semen when it is corrupted or fails to achieve
perfection.

35 Why are people less able to have sexual intercourse in 14
the water ? Is it because in water none of those things
liquefy which liquefy with heat lead, for example, or wax ?
Now the semen obviously liquefies with heat, for it does not
liquefy until it is warmed by the friction. Fishes, however,
have sexual intercourse without friction.

Why is it that sexual intercourse is the most pleasant of 15
all things to animals, and is it so of necessity or with some
purpose in view ? Is it pleasant because the semen comes
either from the whole body, as some declare; 1 or not from
5 the whole body but only from the area over which all the
ducts of the veins extend? The pleasure then of the
friction 4 being similar in both cases, the sensation extends
as it were over the whole body. Now the friction is
pleasant, since it involves the emission of vaporous moisture
enclosed unnaturally in the body ; but the act of generation

1 Reading KOI avro 5e (Richards).

2 Reading in 11. 28-30 Trepaivop-fvov (KHI yap vypbv KCU oyKos ris KOI
ffapt- yiyvfrai Trore), dia KT\.

3 This is the Hippocratean doctrine denied by Aristotle in G. A.
72iM 3 ff.

4 For this meaning of KVYJO-^OS, see G. A. 723 b 34 and A. Platt s
translation.

BOOK IV. 15 878 1

is an emission of similar matter for its natural purpose.
It is pleasant both of necessity and because it has a purpose 10
in view, of necessity, because the way to a natural result is
pleasant, if it is realized by the senses ; and because of its
purpose, namely, the procreation of animal life. For it is
the pleasure more than anything else which incites animals
to sexual intercourse.

16 Why is it that sexual excess is beneficial in some diseases
caused by phlegm P 1 Is it because it involves the emission 15
of an excretion, and so a considerable amount of excreted
matter is rejected with it, and phlegm is an excretion ?

17 Why does sexual intercourse cool and dry the stomach ?
Does it cool it because the heat is expelled in coition ?
Coition causes dry ness, because, as the heat goes out, the
moisture 2 is vaporized and finds its way out as the body
cools, while at the same time the heat caused by the act of 20
copulation has a drying effect.

18 Why are those whose eyelashes fall off accounted lustful ?
Is it for the same reason as that for which the bald also are
so accounted ? 3 For the eyelashes and the hair of the head
really belong together. The reason is that all the con
genital hair which does not increase as a man gets older, 25
falls off owing to lustfulness. For the hair of the head and
the eyebrows and eyelashes are congenital hair ; and of
these the eyebrows alone sometimes grow thicker with
advancing years (the reason for this has been stated else
where), 4 while the hair of the head and the eyelashes both
fail from the same cause, viz., that lustfulness cools the upper 30
parts of the body which are deficient in blood, and so this
portion of the body does not concoct any of the nourish
ment, and the hair not receiving any nourishment drops off.

19 Why is it that those who wish to pass urine cannot have
sexual intercourse ? 5 Is it because the ducts become full ?

1 This problem has been already treated in i. 50.

2 It seems necessary to supply TO vypuv here as the subject of
cor/u fcra(.

3 Cp. G.A. 783 b 2;ff.

4 This appears to be a direct reference to P. A. 6?8 b 19, 20.

5 Cp. 877*6-8.

8y8 b PROBLEMATA

35 Now that which is full of moisture cannot admit any more
moisture.

Why is it that varicocele prevents both man and any 20
other animals which suffer from it from procreating their
species ? Is it because varicocele is due to a displacement
of breath, and this is why it is beneficial to melancholic
diseases ? Now sexual intercourse also is accompanied by
879* an emission of breath. 1 If therefore a rush of breath makes
its way along- when sexual intercourse is taking- place, it
fails to impart movement to the semen 2 and the latter
becomes cold ; consequently it enfeebles the erection of the
penis.

Why do those who have sexual intercourse usually 21

5 become languid and weaker ? 3 Is it because the semen

is an excretion from the whole body, 4 and so the com

position of the body, like the harmony of a building, is

disturbed by the loss of any portion of it if, for example,

all the blood 5 or any other component part of it is removed ?

So important is that which the body loses in sexual inter

course, being indeed formed from a large amount of nourish-

10 ment though itself small in quantity , f) just as a cake is made

from wheaten flour.

Why is it that the penis is greatly distended in those who 22
have sexual intercourse at a time when they desire to pass
urine ? Is it because, owing to the ducts being full of
moisture, the semen, passing out through a narrower space,
swells the bulk of the penis and lifts it up, for it is situated
close to the ducts.

15 What is the cause of the erection and swelling of the 23
penis ? Are there two reasons, first, that it is raised by
a weight applied behind the testicles, the latter acting as
the fulcrum, and, secondly, that the pores become full of

1 For the semen is vypuv nvtv parades (cp. 878 b S).

2 i. e. the breath passes into the vein instead of helping in the
emission of the semen.

3 This problem is almost identical with that of chapter 6, but there
man is compared with other animals.

4 Cp. 8;8 b 3 ard note. 5 Omitting 77 before nav with T. G.
6 Cp. 877 b 3L

BOOK IV. 23 879 a

breath ? Or does its bulk become greater from the increase
of the moisture and its change of position, or from the
formation of moisture ? Now very large objects are less 20
easily moved, because the weight is farther away from the
fulcrum. 1

24 Why is it that those who have sexual intercourse or are
capable of it have an evil odour and what is called a hircine
smell, whereas children do not ? 2 Is it because, as has
already been said, 3 in children the breath concocts the
moisture and perspiration, whereas the perspiration of 2 5
grown men remains unconcocted ?

25 Why is it that in summer men are less capable of sexual
intercourse and women more so ? 4 As the poet says,

Men, when the artichoke blooms, are weaker and women more

wanton. 5

Is it because the testicles hang down lower then than in
the winter, and they must be drawn up if sexual intercourse 30
is to take place ? Or is it because hot natures collapse in
summer when the heat is excessive, but cold natures are
invigorated by it ? Now a man is dry and hot, but a
woman is cold and moist ; consequently a man s strength is
impaired, but a woman s force is invigorated, its deficiency 35
being compensated by its opposite. 7

26 Why is it that some persons find pleasure in submitting
to sexual intercourse, and some take pleasure in performing
the active part, and others do not ? Is it because each form
of excretion has a region in which it is naturally secreted
and, when an effort is made, the breath in finding its way 879 b
out causes the excretion to swell and expels it ; for example,
urine collects in the bladder, food from which the moisture

has been extracted in the bowels, tears in the eyes, mucous
matter in the nostrils, and blood in the veins ? Similarly 5
the semen collects in the testicles and penis. In those
whose ducts are not in a natural condition, owing either

1 And in this case the object is not large and is therefore easily moved.

2 Cp. above, chapter 12. 3 Cp. 877 b 22fT.
4 Cp. below, chapter 28.

* Hesiod, Op. 582, 586. 6 Reading QdXXovcrw (Richards).

7 i. e. heat.

879 b PROBLEMATA

to the blocking up of the ducts leading- to the sexual organs
(as in the case of eunuchs or other victims of sexual disable
ment) or to some other cause, all such moisture collects in
the region of the fundament ; for it is by this way that it

10 passes out of the body. That this is so is proved by the
contraction of that part in sexual intercourse and the
wasting of that region of the body. 1 If therefore through
wantonness a man has a superfluity of semen, it all collects
there ; and so, when desire comes upon him, the part in
which it is collected desires friction. This desire may be

15 due to diet or to the imagination. When desire is stirred
from any cause, the breath collects and secretion of this
kind flows to its natural place. If the secretion be thin
and full of air, when the breath finds its way out the desire
ceases (just as the erection in boys and older persons some
times ceases without the discharge of any moisture) ; 2 and
the same thing happens, if the moisture dries up. But if

20 neither of these things occurs, the desire continues till the
one or the other of them takes place. But those who are
effeminate by nature are so constituted that little or no
semen is secreted where it is secreted by those who are in
a natural state, 8 but it collects in this part of the body. 4
The reason of this is that they are unnaturally constituted ;
for, though male, they are in a condition in which this part

25 of them is necessarily incapacitated. Now incapacity may
involve either complete destruction or else perversion ; the
former, however, is impossible, for it would involve a man
becoming a woman. They must therefore become perverted
and aim at something other than the discharge of semen.
The result is that they suffer from unsatisfied desires, like
women ; for the moisture is scanty and has not enough

30 force to find its way out and quickly cools. When it finds
its way to the fundament only, there is a desire to submit to
sexual intercourse ; but if it settles both there and in the
sexual organs, there is a desire both for performing and

1 Cp. chapter 2.

2 Enclosing coo-Trep . . . e /cKpttfeWoy in a parenthesis and reading
navovTai oral/ TC KaTaafteo-dt KT\.

3 i. e. els opxei? KCU atdota, cp. above, 11. 5, 6.

4 i. e. ev TO IS nfpl rr)v eftpav.

BOOK IV. 26 879*

submitting to the sexual act, and the desire for one or other
is greater as more semen is present in either part. This
condition is sometimes the result of habit ; for men take
a pleasure in whatever they are accustomed to do and emit
the semen accordingly. They therefore desire to do the 35
acts by which pleasure and the emission of semen are pro
duced, and habit becomes more and more a second nature.
For this reason those who have been accustomed to submit
to sexual intercourse about the age of puberty and not
before, because recollection of the past presents itself to 88o
them during the act of copulation and with the recollection
the idea of pleasure, desire to take a passive part owing l to
habit, as though it were natural to them to do so ; frequent
repetition, however, and habit become a second nature.
All this is more likely to occur in the case of one who is 5
both lustful and effeminate.

27 Why is it that those who desire to submit to sexual
intercourse feel a great shame about confessing it, which
they do not feel in confessing a desire for meat or drink or
anything of that kind ? Is it because the desire for most
things is necessary and its non-satisfaction is sometimes
fatal to life, but sexual desires proceed from something 10
beyond mere necessity ?

28 Why is it that men are more inclined for sexual inter
course in the winter and women in the summer ? 2 Is it
because men are hotter and drier in their nature, and
women moister and cooler ? In men therefore during the
winter the moisture and heat 3 are sufficient to cause the 15
impulse (and it is moisture and heat which give rise to
the production of the semen), whereas in women the heat

is less and the moisture is congealed owing to the lack of
fire. But in summer in women 4 the heat is well propor
tioned, whereas in men it is more than sufficient ; for the
excess dissolves much of their strength. For this reason

1 Omitting Se after Bia ; the sentence otherwise has no principal verb.

2 Cp. above, chapter 25.

3 i. e. the natural heat and the moisture of the season.

4 Reading TOV Se Otpovs rals p.ti> eVn : X a reads m for ovv.

645-25 F

88o a PROBLEMATA

20 also children are thinner during the summer ; for it is a case
of fire added to fire \ l

Why is it that those who are hot by nature, when they 29
are strong and well nourished, if they do not have sexual
intercourse are often oppressed 2 by bile, which makes its
way down in a very bitter condition, and a salty phlegm is
25 engendered, and their complexion changes? Is it because
some excretion always comes away with the semen ?
(Wherefore also the semen of some men who emit a large
quantity of excretion 3 is said to smell of the water in which
fish have been washed. 4 ) So when they have sexual inter
course, this excretion comes away with the semen and so
causes no inconvenience ; but if they abstain from copula
tion, the excretion becomes bitter or salty.

3 o Why are the melancholic particularly inclined for sexual 30
intercourse ? 5 Is it because they are full of breath, and the
semen is a discharge of breath ? If so, those whose semen
is full of breath must necessarily often desire to purge
themselves of it ; for thus they are relieved of it.

35 Why are birds, and men with thick hair, lustful ? 6 Is it 31
because they have a large amount of moisture ? Or is this
not true (for the female sex is moist and not hairy), but is the
real reason that the natures both of birds and of thick-
haired men are able owing to their heat to concoct a large
quantity of moisture ? This is indicated by the presence of
hair and feathers. Or is it because the moisture is plentiful
and is overpowered by the heat ? For if the moisture were
88o b not plentiful or were not overpowered, hair would not grow
on human beings nor feathers on birds. Now the semen is
formed most plentifully under conditions of locality and
at seasons that have these characteristics, 7 in spring for
example, which is naturally moist and hot. Birds and

1 Cp. 86i a 3i and note. 2 Reading Trpoo-to-rarat (Bussemaker).

3 Reading TrepirrwjuariKcoi/ for nvevfjLaTiKav , the Latin version renders

excrementis abundantium.

4 Ix6v<ov TrXvvrpou must be taken together (cp. Tr

534 a 27), and l\6v<*v does not agree with Trepm-w/icmKoij/ as implied by
Bonitz (Index, p. 352, s. v. Ixtivs).

5 Cp. 953 b 32 ff. 6 Cp. below, x. 24.
7 i. e. when moisture is plentiful and is overpowered by heat.

BOOK IV. 31 88o b

lame men are lustful for the same reason, namely, that in 5
both, owing to the deficiencies of their legs, the nourishment
is carried downwards in small quantities only, while the rest
travels into the upper region of the body and is converted
into semen.

32 Why is it that when a man has sexual intercourse his
eyes grow very weak ? Is it not clear that this happens
because the moisture leaves them ? This is proved by the 10
fact that the semen is cold ; for it does not become moist
unless the heat warms it thoroughly. Nor does it require
melting, for it is dispersed about the body like blood.

F 2

88o<

BOOK V

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH FATIGUE

15 WHY is it that long walks are more fatiguing and short I
walks less fatiguing over level ground than over uneven
country P 1 Is it because much movement and violent move
ment causes fatigue, and spasmodic movement is violent, and
continuous and monotonous movement is much movement ?
In walking therefore on hilly ground, if the distance be long,

20 the change provides a rest, and the same movement is not
continued for long, even in the case of horses, owing to the
change. On even ground, on the other hand, the similarity of
position continues uninterruptedly and gives the limbs no
rest, but helps to make the movement continuous. Now if
the distance is short, no fatigue is caused on flat ground by

25 long-continued motion ; whereas over hilly ground the
violent change to an opposite kind of movement, sometimes
uphill and sometimes down, gives rise to fatigue. Such, in
our opinion, is movement over hill country, and that over
level ground is the contrary.

Why is it that those who faint and those who collapse 2
30 after physical exertion are generally held to become smaller
in bulk and their voices shriller ? Is it because their voices,
appearing to be less, seem shriller (this can be illustrated
by the fact that those who imitate distant voices make shrill
sounds), 2 while their bulk appears less (because the blood
removes from the upper to the lower parts of the body) ? 3

Why is it that only the stomach becomes thinner in those 3
35 who take violent physical exercise ? Is it because the greatest
quantity of fat is found round the stomach ?

1 This problem is derived practically word for word from Theophr.
de las sit., 15.

2 Cp. 899 a 22 ff.

3 The MSS. read KGU 01 oynoi eXdrrovs without adding any reason,
which is necessary to the sense and to the balance of the sentence.
The words enclosed in brackets are taken from T. G., who evidently
translates a longer text and reads quod sanguis a summis corporis
partibus sevocat ad imas.

BOOK V. 4 88o b

4 Why is it that the fat is consumed in those who exert
themselves ? Is it because fat melts when heated, and the
movement causes heat, whereas flesh does not melt ?

5 Why is it that the parts round the belly are fattest ? Is

it because they are near to the nourishment ? While then 88i a
the other parts of the body receive something from the
belly, the belly itself often receives something. Or is it
because the belly is exerted less than the other parts, because
it has no joints ?

6 Why is it that fatigue ceases more readily if one mixes
water with the oil with which one rubs oneself? 1 Is its
because the oil sinks in farther when mixed with water,
whereas by itself it does not penetrate so well, because it
has a tendency to remain on the surface ? If, therefore, it
sinks in, the body is more softened ; for oil is naturally hot,
and hot things have a drying and hardening effect, and
dryness and hardness are inexpedient in fatigue ; but when 10
applied with water the oil has a less drying effect.

7 Why is it that vomiting is prescribed for those who are
suffering from fatigue, although vomiting is itself fatiguing ?
Is it because fatigue is caused by the crushing and pressure
and weariness of the bones, and this can be caused either by
some external or by some internal agency, and in the latter 15
case from one of two causes, either because the flesh over
reaches its own strength, or because one bodily constituent
mingles in a large quantity with the rest of the body and
does not keep to its proper place, as happens with the
excretions ? For any burdens which are put upon us
externally cause more fatigue than our own members, even 20
though they are lighter than these in weight. This can be
illustrated by the fact that those who have eaten or drunk
somewhat freely, though they have exerted themselves less
than when they were fasting, yet feel more fatigue, because
the food, being unconcocted, is not in its proper place.
And since fatigue causes liquefaction, and liquefaction is an
excretion, it is the latter which produces fatigue in us, 25

1 Cp. Hippocrates, de Diaet. ii. 65.

88i a PROBLEMATA

wandering about at random and attacking the bones and
sinews and the interior parts of the flesh, which are rare
and open, Consequently vomiting, by dislodging the
excretion which is the cause of fatigue, naturally makes us
less fatigued ; for it leaves the body in the state in which it
was when the exertion began. Vomiting is fatiguing, not

30 because of the excess of movement caused while it is taking
place, but when it does not happen to be thoroughly carried
out ; for fatigue caused by vomiting occurs when a con
siderable amount of food is left behind and this contains
excretions, which, as we have already said, 1 happens in
those who have eaten largely. If, therefore, in the latter it

35 is not exertion which causes fatigue, but they feel fatigue
because of the condition in which they are, so vomiting
could not be the cause of fatigue in those who do not get
rid of all the food which is in them ; 2 for in that case every
one who vomited would feel fatigue, whereas many through
vomiting become less fatigued.

Why is it more fatiguing to the arm if one casts with the 8
88l b hand empty than with a stone in it? 3 Is it because the
movement is more spasmodic if the hand be empty, for the
hand has nothing to rest upon, 4 such as the thrower finds
in the missile which he holds in his hand ? Similarly the
competitor in the fivefold contest 5 finds resistance in the
weights 6 which he holds, and the runner in his arms which

1 Cp. 11. 21-3 above.

2 i. e. the cause of fatigue is not the act of vomiting but the fact that
food is sometimes left behind which engenders excrements, and these
cause fatigue.

3 This problem is clearly derived from Theophr., op. cit., 13 ; cp.
also de Incess. Anim. 70 5 a 17 ff.

4 aTrepeideiv is practically the same as avrepeideiv of Mech. 85I b 35,
where ro avrepdSeiv expresses vis inertiae, the tendency of a body at
rest to remain at rest. In this case the tendency of the missile to
remain at rest causes resistance and therefore makes the action of the
arm less spasmodic. Cp. also Mech. 858*9 avrirfivd yap TO ^pe/uoui/.

6 The pentathlon was a combined contest in running, jumping, disk-
throwing, javelin-throwing, and wrestling.

6 aXrijpfs were weights held in the hand and thrown backwards by
the jumper whilst in the air to give him impetus. Several such weights
still exist in the British Museum and elsewhere, cp. Norman Gardiner,
Greek Athletic Sports and Festivals, p. 298 ff., and A. S. L. Farquharson
on de Incess. Anim. 7o5 a 17.

BOOK V. 8 88i l

he swings ; l so the former jumps farther if he holds weights 5
than if he does not, and the latter runs more quickly if he
swings his arms than if he does not do so.

9 Why is it that quick running causes a tendency to disease
in the head both in man and in the other animals ? Yet
generally speaking running appears to draw the excretions 10
downwards, as does walking ; for which reason also those
who walk much grow fat in the legs, because both the
nourishment and the excretions settle down from the upper
into the lower parts. Is it true that while motion has this 2
effect, yet quick motion, owing to the strain and the holding
of the breath which it involves, causes heat in the head and
inflates the veins in it and renders them liable to be affected 1 5
by external influences, such as cold and heat, and by the
contents of the trunk ; 3 and that if these can enter the head,
disease is necessarily engendered in that region ?

10 Why is it more fatiguing to walk on level than on uneven
ground, whereas one can walk more quickly on an even
than on an uneven road ? 4 Is it because it is less fatiguing 20
if one does not move continually in the same position, and
this is the case rather in traversing uneven ground ? On
the other hand one progresses more quickly the less one s
movement is contrary to nature. On even ground, therefore,
the raising and planting of the foot is a slight but frequent
movement, while the opposite occurs on uneven ground.
Now to raise the foot is unnatural (for raising anything 25
requires an effort) ; and the slight movement of raising the
foot at each step becomes considerable when repeated many
times.

11 Why is it more fatiguing to lie down on a flat than on
a concave surface ? 5 Is it for the same reason that it is
more fatiguing to lie on a convex than on a flat surface ?

1 On the importance attached by the Greeks to arm action, especially
in short races, see N. Gardiner, op. cit., p. 282.

2 Reading roCro for THVTO.

3 The #d>/;a is defined by Aristotle (H.A. 491*27) as TO an

4 This problem is again treated in chapter 23 ; the source in both
cases is Theophr., op. cit., 14.

5 The source of this problem is Theophr., op. cit., 9.

88i b PROBLEMATA

30 For the weight being concentrated in one place in the sitting
or reclining position causes pain owing to the pressure. This
is more the case on a convex than on a straight surface, and
more on a straight than on a concave ; for our body assumes
curved rather than straight lines, and in such circumstances
concave surfaces give more points of contact than flat

35 surfaces. For this reason also couches and seats which
yield to pressure are less fatiguing than those which do not
do so.

Why are short walks fatiguing ? : Is it because they 12
involve abrupt change, for they necessitate coming often to
a standstill ? Now frequent change from one extreme to
882 a another is fatiguing, for it does not allow one to become
accustomed to either extreme, and this is tiring; and one
cannot become accustomed to both things at once.

Why is it that those who ride on horseback water more 13
freely at the eyes the quicker the horse goes ? 2 Is it

5 because the stream of air which meets them is colder
according as it is for a shorter time in contact with the body
(as happens in the case of naked runners), and it is the cold
which makes the eyes water ? 3 Or is the reason the
contrary of this, namely, that heat makes the eyes water
(the sun, for instance), and movement engenders heat?

10 Or is it due to the impact of the air ? For as blasts of wind
coming from an opposite direction trouble the eyes, so
the air all the more deals a gentle blow the quicker the
horse is driven.

Why is it that the other parts of the body become more 14
fleshy when subjected to friction, but the stomach becomes
leaner ? Or is it true that the stomach does not become
1 5 gradually leaner 4 but solider ? The flesh, however, is not
similarly affected, and this is the point of the problem ; for,
speaking generally, the stomach does become leaner as the
result of exercise and exertion. The reason is that the fat

1 Cp. below, chapter 35 : the source of both problems is Theophr.,
op. cit., 14.

2 Cp. below, chapter 37. 3 Reading 8aKpveiv (Richards).

4 sc. AeTrrorepa yiverai ; but T. G. appears to translate a different
text.

BOOK V. 14 882 a

parts, and those which naturally admit of more expansion,
liquefy when heated. Now the skin naturally admits of
expansion ; but, because it very quickly fattens, it always 20
contains some fat, unless any disease is present. The reason
of this is that it is near the nourishment. 1 Since, therefore,
generally speaking-, fat is not natural but adventitious, and
is not one of the necessary constituents of the body, as is
the flesh, the movements set up by exercise and friction
warm and melt it and distribute the superfluous nourishment 25
in the other portions of the body. It is for this reason that
sitting still makes the stomach fat and the rest of the body
thin ; whereas movement and friction make the stomach
thin and fill out the rest of the body.

15 Why is it that after long and violent walking or running,

if one stands on tiptoe, the heels quiver and are hastily 3
drawn 2 down again ? Is it because, owing to the continuity
and violence of the movement, the quivering of the muscles
in the man does not cease ? For the mind often controls
the body as a whole, but does not control certain parts of
it, when they have been set in motion in a certain way,
the heart, for example, and the sexual organ. The reason is 35
that a considerable quantity of breath is consumed by heat
round the muscles, which does not cool off immediately
a man comes to a standstill. This breath, therefore, is
drawn down, making him quiver, as it were dragging at him
beneath by its movement, and leaves him little control over
the most distant part of his body in this case over his
heels. A similar phenomenon occurs in the trembling of
the lower lip in those who are angry.

16 Why is it that those who are not running very hard 882 b
respire rhythmically ? Is it because every rhythm is
measured by a definite movement, and the movement at
regular intervals which occurs in running is of this nature ?

As soon, therefore, as they begin to run they respire ; and
so the respiration taking place at equal intervals, because it 5
is measured out by a uniform movement, creates a rhythm.
Or is it because all respiration without exception takes

1 Cp. 88o b 39 ff. - Reading o-xrcoz/rai for O-TTUTCU.

882 b PROBLEMATA

place at equal intervals in those who respire naturally and
do not hold their breath ? The rhythm then is not obvious
in those who are sitting or walking, because the movement
10 of the body is slight; and in those who are running vigorously
we cannot comprehend the rhythm of the respiration, because
our senses cannot follow the movement. But in those who
are running moderately fast the movement allows the measure
observed by the breathing to be perceptible, and so shows
the rhythm.

Why is it that, when we are running, the air seems to 17
15 turn into breath? Is it because, while we are moving in
the act of running, we set in motion a stream of air
continuous with our bodies, and this is breath ? Wherefore
the air not only seems to turn into breath, but actually does
so. Or is it because in running we come into collision with
the air, and, when this happens, we have a more acute
20 perception of the air owing to the movement ? It is only
natural, therefore, that it should seem to us to turn into
breath ; for the phenomenon occurs through the rush ot our
movement.

Why is it that one is more liable to fall when running 18
than when walking ? * Is it because in the former case one
raises oneself higher before moving? For this is the
difference between running and walking.

25 Why is it that in ascending a slope our knees feel the 19
strain, and in descending our thighs ? 2 Is it because when
we ascend we throw the body upwards and the jerk of the
body 3 from the knees is considerable, and so we feel the
strain in the knees ? But in going downhill, because the

3 weight is carried by the legs, we are supported by our
thighs, and so they feel the strain. Furthermore, whatever
is unnatural causes strain and pain. Now it is natural for
the knees to bend forward and the thighs to bend backwards.
In going ^uphill then the knees are bent backwards owing

1 Cp. below,*chapter 29.

2 Cp. below, chapter .24 ; the source in both cases is Theophr.,
op. cit., u, 12.

3 Omitting *a\ before ifji-no TCOI> yovdruv with Bonitz.

BOOK V. 19 882*

to one s desire to support oneself, but in going- downhill 35
the thighs are bent forwards because the body has a tendency
to fall forwards.

20 Why is it that on journeys the middle of the thigh is the
part which feels the strain most ? Is it because in anything
that is prolonged and continuous and fixed : the strain falls
most upon the centre, and so it is most likely to break at
that point ? Now the thigh is of^this nature, and so it is in 883*
the middle of it that we feel the strain most.

21 Why is it that persons of a moist temperament easily
choke as a result of exertion and through heat ? Is it
because their moisture when heated becomes air and the
excess of it burns more fiercely ? When, therefore, it cannot 5
find its way out owing to its abundance, the process of
cooling does not take place ; and so it quickly catches fire
owing to the natural and adventitious heat. It is for this
reason that perspiration induced by taking physical exercise,
and by exerting oneself generally, and the emission of breath
are beneficial ; for breath is formed by the separation and 10
rarefaction of moisture.

22 Why is it that bodies of an equable temperament often
feel weariness but throw it off more easily ? Is the cause
the same in both cases ? For that which is equable is
uniform, and that which is uniform is the more subject to
similar influences ; so if any part suffers, the whole straight
way suffers in sympathy. But that which is not equable,
being more disunited, is not sympathetically affected by its 15
parts. A body of equable temperament therefore often
feels weariness, but throws it off more easily, because the
whole body shares it ; for the suffering, being distributed
over a larger area, is weaker and therefore more easily got
rid of. But a body which is not of an equable temperament,
inasmuch as it has no communion with its members, is less
often afflicted with weariness, but has greater difficulty in
shaking it off; for its suffering is acute. 20

1 Inserting a comma after e

88s a PROBLEMATA

Why is it more fatiguing to walk on level than on uneven 23
ground, whereas one can walk more quickly on an even
than on an uneven road ? l Is it because it is least fatiguing
if one does not move continually in "the same position, and
25 this is the case rather in traversing uneven ground ? 2 But
one travels more quickly when the foot has to be lifted less
in any equal period of time. On level ground the raising
of the foot is a slight but frequent movement, on uneven
ground the reverse ; but the slight 3 movement of raising
the foot at each step becomes considerable when repeated
many times.

Why is it that in descending a slope we feel the strain 24

30 most in the thighs, and in ascending in the legs ? 4 Is it

because in ascending the strain is due to the raising of the

body ? For the whole body becomes a burden ; and so

the part upon which it all rests and with which we raise it

(that is, the legs) feels the strain most. For the leg is an

extremity, having length but not having width, as the foot

has ; consequently it is shaken. So we may cite in

35 illustration the fact that we move weights with the shoulder

and rest them upon it, and therefore feel the strain most in

the shoulder. But when we are descending, the strain is

caused by the body falling downwards and thrusting us

forward unnaturally, so that we feel the strain most in the

part on which it falls most and which it shakes. Now the

40 leg remains unaffected, and the trunk forms the weight ; but

it is the thigh which receives the weight and is shaken,

883 b because it has extension and is forced from above into a bent

position where the trunk presses on it.

Why is it that a journey seems longer when we traverse 25
it without knowing its length than when we do know it,
all other conditions being equal ? 5 Is it because to know

1 A repetition, partly verbal, of the problem of chapter 10.

2 The text as it stands gives no sense and we must clearly restore
from 881^20, 21 ^ on aKontdTarov p.tv TO p.r] del ei> (TOO avTq) (T^/iaTl
TTOiticr6ai rrjv KLvrjcnv^ 6 o~VjU/3aiVfi eV) TTJ oi/co/zaAco KT\., the omission being

due to homoeoteleuton.

3 Reading yivo^vov (fiixpov} TTO\V, cp. 88i b 26.

4 Cp. above, chapter 19.

5 This problem occurs again in xxx. 4.

BOOK V. 25 883

its length is to be able to connect a number with it, and 5
the indeterminate is always more than the determinate ?
Just as, therefore, if one knows that a journey is a certain
length, it must necessarily be finite, so, if one does not know,
as though the proposition was convertible, 1 the mind
draws a false conclusion, and the distance appears infinite.
Furthermore, a quantity is determinate, and that which is
determinate is a quantity ; therefore when a thing appears i
not to be determinate, it appears to be as it were infinite,
because that which is of a nature to be determined, if it is
not so. is infinite ; so that what appears not to be determined
necessarily appears in a sense unlimited.

26 Why is it that the thighs feel fatigue more than the legs ? 2
Is it because they are nearer to the part of the body which
contains the excrement, so that, when that part overflows 15
with heat owing to the movement, the thighs contract more
readily and to a greater extent ? Or is it because the thighs
are more closely connected by growth with one another, 3
for they suffer considerably owing to the separation of what
is really continuous? 4 For indeed, If one feels fatigue
when there is no excrement in the body, yet it is the thighs 20
and loins which suffer more than the other parts. Or is it
because, just as swellings in the groin are caused, if one
receives a blow, 5 owing to the close connexion of the veins
and sinews, so the thigh is similarly affected ? For the
thigh is nearer than the leg to the source of the veins. 6 Or
is it because the thigh remains more in the same position
than the legs, and this is more fatiguing ? 7 Or is it because

1 dvTi(TTpe(povTo$ is here used in its logical sense of transposing the
terms of a proposition (cp. Pr. Anal. 25 a 6ff.) ; the proposition any
journey of which I know the length must be finite is converted into
any journey that is finite must be one of which I know the length .

2 The source of this problem is Theophr., op. ctt. t lo.

3 Reading

4 Cp. Top. I45 b 2 fj d\yrjdwv du ia-Tacris TU>V (rvfj.<$vTwv pepwv p-era /Stay.

5 Reading Tj-X^yeVros- (cp. Bonitz, Index, p. 140). The sense is clearer

in the original source (Theophr., /. <;.), on 8e rj dvdpTrjo-is noiel avp.7rd6etav
T&V vevpatv Km (pXefitov KOI CK T>V /Sov/Sco^coy df)\ov TrX^yeVro)!/ yap ra>v
KaTw6(.v evravda Povftvisfs.

6 i. e. the heart, cp. P. A. 66 5 b 15, de iuv. et sen. 468 b 31.

7 Cp. 88i b 20-22.

883 b PROBLEMATA

25 the thigh is fleshy, and therefore the natural heat 1 there is
considerable ?

Why is it that in some people 2 sores are formed as the 27
result of exertion ? 3 Is it because, when the body contains
impurities, movement heats it and causes other excretions
to exude with the perspiration ? These excretions, being
30 thick and containing harmful humours of an acid, bitter,
and salty nature, cannot be expelled owing to their thick
ness, but swell up through the flesh and cause sores owing
to the bitterness of the humour which they contain.

Why is it that food is not given immediately after exercise 28
and after medicine has been administered ? Is it because
35 the body is still being purged and has not yet rested from
its toil, and the excretions have not yet been expelled ?

Why is it more difficult to run than to walk ? 4 Is it 29
because the runner has a heavier burden, since, when he is
raised in the air, he has his whole weight to support ? But
a man who is walking continues to put his weight on the
40 part of him which is at rest, like a man leaning against
a wall.

88d a Why is it that one does not feel hungry immediately after 30
exercise ? Is it because liquefaction still remains until the
concoction of anything is complete ? 5 Or is it owing to
the breath which the exertion engenders from the moisture ?
Or is it owing to the thirst which is due to the heat caused
5 by the exertion ? All these possible causes are present.

Why is it that those who are fatigued and those who are 31
suffering from phthisis are apt to emit semen during sleep ? 6
Is it because generally speaking those who are warm and
moist are inclined to do so, since the semen naturally has
these characteristics ? 7 Now such a thing is most likely to

1 Reading, with Richards, TO Kara (frvcriv {$epju6i>) <?x tv

2 Reading, with Richards, Zvtoi.

3 The source of this problem is Theophr. de Sudore, 13 ; cp.
Hippocr. Epid. vi. 5. 15.

4 Cp. chapter 18. 6 Reading W ai> n ire<j>6fj (Bussemaker).

6 Galen, Epid. vi. 3 quotes this problem as Aristotelian ; cp. also
Theophr. de Lassit.^ 16.

7 Cp. 876*9-12.

BOOK V. 31 884*

happen in persons in these conditions, when the heat
engendered by sleep is added ; for the body requires a slight 10
impulse only, which must be internal and not external.
This condition is fulfilled in those who are suffering from
phthisis and in those who are fatigued ; the latter being full
of hot liquid owing to their fatigue and movement, and the
former owing to their state of flux and the heat engendered
by their inflamed condition. 15

2 Why is it more difficult to apply prolonged friction
oneself to the left leg than to the right ? Is it because,
though our right is the side which is capable of exertion,
yet the rubbing of the left leg, since it involves l a distorted
attitude, is unnatural, and anything which is unnatural is
difficult ? 3 The difficulty of rubbing the right side with 2 o
the left hand is not obvious, because the left hand has no
strength whichever side it is applied to. 3

3 Why is it healthy to reduce the amount of nourishment
and to increase the amount of exercise ? Is it because
abundance of excretion is the cause of disease ? Now this

is due either to excess of nourishment or to lack of 25
exercise.

4. Why should the flesh be made rare rather than dense in
order to promote health ? 4 For just as a city or locality is
healthy which is open to the breezes (and that is why the
sea too is healthy), so a body is healthier in which the air
can circulate. For either there ought to be no excrement
present in the body, or else the body ought to get rid of it 30
as soon as possible and ought to be in such a condition that
it can reject the excrement as soon as it receives it and be
always in a state of motion and never at rest. For that
which remains stationary putrefies (standing water, for
example), and that which putrefies and does not move
causes disease ; but that which is rejected passes away
before it becomes corrupt. This then does not occur if the 35

1 Reading e eorpa/i/ieVa)s (yap) yivtrai with Bussemaker.

2 Cp. 882*31.

3 The text here seems corrupt, but the sense is clear.

4 This problem occurs also in i. 52, and is identical with the second
part of xxxvii. 3.

884 a PROBLEMATA

flesh is dense, the ducts being as it were blocked up, but it
does happen if the flesh is rare. One ought not, therefore,
to walk naked in the sun ; for the flesh thereby solidifies
and acquires an absolutely fleshy consistency, and the body
becomes moister, for the internal moisture remains, 1 but the
surface moisture is expelled, a process which also takes
884 b place in meat when it is roasted rather than boiled. 2 Nor
ought one to walk about with the chest bare ; for then the
sun draws the moisture out of the best constructed parts of
the body, which A least of all require to be deprived of it.
It is rather the inner parts of the body which should be
5 submitted to this process ; for, because they are remote, it
is impossible to produce perspiration from them except by
violent effort, but it is easy to produce it from the chest
because it is near the surface.

Why is it that short walks are fatiguing ? 4 Is it because 35
one often comes to a standstill and there is no uniform
10 movement in the joints, and this is fatiguing ?

Why do those who stand still in the sun become warmer 36
than those who move, and this although movement is pro
ductive of heat ? Is it true that every kind of movement
does not produce heat, but some kinds have a cooling
effect, as happens, for example, when one blows upon or

15 keeps in motion kitchen-pots which have boiled up ? If
then the heat remains when one stands still and, doing so,
heats us more than if it w r ere in motion (for our own body
always gives off a warm steam, which heats the neighbouring
air, as though there were a burning brand there), then, if we
remain motionless, the air surrounding us becomes warm

20 for the reasons already stated ; whereas, if we move, a wind
is set up which cools us, for wind always has a cooling
effect.

Why is it that those who ride on horseback water more 37
freely at the eyes the quicker the horse goes, and those on
foot the quicker they run ? 5 Is it due to the fact that the

1 Reading ^la^evei for fir) p.evet, cp. 865 b 31.

2 Reading TO. onra TUV l<j>0S>v, cp. 865 b 32, 966*28.

3 Reading a for 6, as in 865 b 34.

4 Cp. above, chapter 12. 6 Cp. above, chapter 13.

BOOK V. 37 884*

air which meets them is cold ? For cold causes the eyes to 25
water ; for by contracting and solidifying- the flesh it purges
out the moisture. Or is the reason the contrary of this,
namely, that the heat causes perspiration, and watering at
the eyes is a form of perspiration ? Therefore both perspira
tion and watering at the eyes are due to heat and are alike
salty ; and it is movement which causes heat. Or is it due 3
to the impact of the air ? For as blasts of wind coming
from an opposite direction trouble the eyes, so too the
quicker a man drives or runs the more does the air deal
a gentle blow, and this causes the eyes to water, because
the ducts of the eye are rarefied by the blow ; for every
blow has the effect either of cleaving or crushing. 35

38 Why is it that fatigue must be cured in the summer by
baths, in the winter by anointing ? l Is it because the latter,
owing to the cold and the changes which it causes in the
body, must be got rid of by heat, which will cause warmth,
and olive-oil contains heat ? In summer, on the other hand,

the body requires moisture ; for the season is dry and chills 885*
are not engendered, because it is warm. A sparing diet of
solid food and a liberal indulgence in liquid nourishment
are characteristic of the summer, the latter being peculiar
to the summer, while the former is commoner than at other
seasons ; for indulgence in drinking is peculiar to the
summer because of the dryness of the season, but a sparing
diet is found at all seasons, but is more general in the
summer ; for then owing to the season more heat is 5
engendered by food.

39 Why is it that those who are running vigorously experi
ence the greatest shock, if any one impedes them in their
course ? Is it because a thing is being drawn apart most
vigorously when it is being dragged or moved violently in
a contrary direction ? If therefore any one impedes one
who is running and whose limbs are being vigorously 10
thrust forward, the result is that he wrenches him back at
the same time as his limbs are still moving forward, and so

1 A repetition almost word for word of Bk. i. 39.

88s a PROBLEMATA

the more vigorously he is running the more violent is the
shock which he receives.

Why is it that walking along roads l over uneven ground 4

15 is less fatiguing than along a flat, straight surface? Is it
because an upright carriage is natural to everybody, but
walking over even surfaces is more fatiguing than over
uneven ground, since walking over even ground causes a
continuous strain on the same members, whereas walking
over uneven ground distributes the strain over the whole
body ? Now walking in warm weather tends more to make

20 the body thin than in cold weather ; for it causes more strain
upon the outer parts, and so causes thinness by engendering
perspiration. Walking in cold weather makes the flesh
more solid and causes a great desire for food ; for it
engenders an increase of heat in the inner parts and, since

25 they become less liable to be affected by the cold, it cleanses
the inner region by increasing the heat there, while it makes
the flesh firm, since it cannot prevail over the whole of it.
In like manner walking uphill is a greater exertion and
tends more to cause thinness than walking downhill. For
walking uphill causes most strain to the loins (whereas

30 walking downhill is most trying to the thighs, for the
whole weight falls upon them and so usually causes fatigue
in them); for as they are forcibly carried 2 upwards in an un
natural manner, heat is engendered. Walking uphill there
fore induces perspiration and causes thinness by heightening
the respiration and engenders pain in the loins ; for the legs,

35 being lifted with difficulty, cause the loins to bend and draw
them up, which naturally causes a very great strain. Walking
on hard, resisting ground causes fatigue to the muscles and
tendons of the legs ; for it causes tension in the sinews and
muscles, because the pressure upon them is violent. Walking
on soft ground is fatiguing to the joints ; for it causes
frequent bending of the joints, because the surface trodden
gives way. 3

1 Reading TWV Kara ras 68ovs (Richards).

2 Omitting Wo roO Qeppov, which spoils the sense, and reading

3 Omitting TO aird eVrt 7rpd/3Xr?/xa, cp, 874 a 34 and note.

BOOK V. 41 885 1

41 Why do we walk with difficulty up a steep slope ? Is it 5
because all progression is made up of raising the feet and
putting them down again ? Now raising the foot is un
natural and putting it down is natural, while putting the
foot forward 1 is a mean between the two. Now in walking
up a steep slope the unnatural motion preponderates.

42 [Why are riders on horseback less likely to fall ? Is it 10
because owing to their fear they are more careful ?] 2

1 Reading npofelvai for npoaOelvai ; the Latin version renders pro-
ponere ; so too Bussemaker.

2 This problem is omitted by C a and neither makes any sense nor
is relevant to a discussion of fatigue.

G 2

885 b

BOOK VI

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH THE POSITIONS
ASSUMED IN LYING DOWN AND IN OTHER
POSTURES.

15 WHY is it that sitting down makes some persons fat and I
others lean ? Is it because bodily conditions differ, some
men being hot, others cold ? Those therefore who are hot
grow fat (for the body owing to its heat prevails over l the
nourishment) ; but those who are cold, owing to the fact
that their body requires heat introduced from without and

20 derives it chiefly from movement, cannot concoct their food
while they are at rest. Or is it because the hot are full of
superfluities and require movement to expend them, while
the cold are not so ?

Why is it necessary that the parts of the body should be 2
distended, as happens when a man takes athletic exercise ?

25 Is it because the ducts must be purged by their own
breath ?

Why is it better to lie in a curved position and why do 3
many physicians prescribe this ? Is it because the stomach
concocts food more quickly when it is kept warm, and it
keeps warmer in this position ? Furthermore it is necessary
to give the vapours a place where they can settle ; for then

30 there is less likely to be pain from flatulence. (It is on this
account that swollen veins and abscesses of all kinds help
to restore a healthy condition, because they form hollows
in which they receive the vapours.) When the body then
is extended no hollow is formed (for the internal organs
occupy all the space) ; but a hollow is formed when the
body is curved.

35 Why is dizziness more likely to occur in those who are 4
standing than in those who are sitting? 2 Is it because,
when one is still, the moisture all inclines to one part of the
body ? This is why raw eggs cannot be spun round and
round but fall over. 3 The same thing occurs when the

1 i.e. concocts (/Term) or digests.

2 Cp. Theophr. de Vert. 12. 3 Ib. 2.

BOOK VI. 4 885*

moisture in the body is put in motion. So one stands up
after having been at rest, when one is in this condition ; l 886 {
but one sits down after having been in motion, when the
moisture is evenly and uniformly distributed

5 Why is it that sleep comes more readily if one lies on
the right side ? Is it because the conditions when we are
awake and when we are asleep are the contrary of one
another ? Since, therefore, when we are awake we recline 5
on the left side, the contrary will occur when another
principle, namely, the contrary, is at work. Or is it
because sleep is the absence of movement ? The parts
then of the body which are most active must be at rest ;
and the parts of the body on the right are most active.
So, if one is lying on this side, a waking principle is as it
were enchained.

6 Why does one feel numbness ? And why more in the ro
hands and feet than elsewhere? 2 Is it because numbness

is a process of cooling, being due to deprivation of blood
and its transference elsewhere ? Now these parts, especially
the feet, are least fleshy and most muscular, and so they are
naturally disposed to cool quickly.

7 Why do we find it comfortable to recline on the left side, 15
but sleep better on the right side ? 3 Is it because by turning
away we avoid looking towards the light, since in the dark
sleep comes on more readily ? Or is it because we keep
awake when reclining on the left side, and in this position
we can easily employ ourselves in any particular function ;
and so for the contrary purpose 4 the contrary position 5

is advantageous ; for each position invites to a particular 20
function. 6

1 i. e. when the moisture is collected in one place.

2 Cp. Theophr., fr. II (Wimmer), de Membrorum Solutione.

3 Cp. above, chapter 5. 4 i. e. for rest,

6 Reading from T. G. npos TO fvavriov (TO Ivavriuv} o-^/xa (so too
Bussemaker).

6 Many MSS. here repeat a shorter and slightly different form of
chapter i : Why is it that sitting down makes some persons fat and
others lean ? Is it because of their bodily condition ? For those who
are hotter grow fat, for the body prevails over the nourishment owing
to its heat, which is not lost (reading a$mpov/u>^) ; but those who
are cool, because they require heat introduced from without, cannot
concoct their nourishment while they are at rest.

886 a

BOOK VII

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH SYMPATHETIC

ACTION

WHY do men generally themselves yawn when they see I
25 others yawn? 1 Is it because, if they are reminded of it
when they feel a desire to perform any function, they then
put it into execution, particularly where the desire is easily
stirred, for example, that of passing urine ? Now a yawn
is a breath and a movement of moisture ; it is therefore
easy of performance, if only one sees some one else yawn
ing ; for the yawn is always ready to come.

Why is it that, although we do not imitate the action 2

30 if we see a man stretching out his hand or foot or doing

anything else of the kind, yet we ourselves yawn if we

see some one else doing so ? 2 Or does this not always

occur, but only when the body happens to feel a desire

and is in such a condition that its moisture becomes heated ?

For then it is recollection which gives the impulse, as also

in sexual desire and hunger ; for it is that which causes

35 recollection to exist 3 that provides the stimulus towards

the condition observed in another person.

Why is it that if we stand by a fire we desire to pass 3
urine, and if men stand near water (for example, near
886 b a river) they actually pass urine ? Is it because water in
general reminds us of the water in our own bodies, and
the neighbourhood of water incites our internal moisture
to come out? Fire of itself dissolves anything which is
solidified in the body, just as the sun melts the snow. 4

1 Cp. problems 2 and 6. 2 Cp. problems I and 6.

3 eWt Kai should perhaps be read for flvai, for that which causes the
recollection also provides the stimulus , &c.

4 This problem is definitely referred to as Aristotelian by Aulus
Gellius (xix. 4) : Aristotelis libri sunt, qui problemata physica inscri-
buntur, lepidissimi et elegantiarum omne genus referti. In his quaerit
. . . cur accidat, ut eum qui propter ignem diutius stetit, libido urinae
lacessat . . . De urina crebra ex igne proximo facta, verba haec posuit :
TO 8e fri p Sia^oXa TO TTeTrrjyos, vcrirfp 6 rj\ios rrjv ^lova. 1

BOOK VII. 4 886 1

4 Why is it that those who come into contact with certain
diseases become affected by them, but no one ever becomes
healthy through contact with health ? l Is it because 5
disease is a state of movement, while health is a state of
rest ? If so, disease can set up movement, but health
cannot. Or is it because disease comes to us against our
will, while health comes by our own wish ? Things then
which occur against our will are different from those which
occur by our wish and deliberate choice.

5 Why is it that not only do some unpleasant sounds
make us shudder 2 for example, when a saw is being i
sharpened, or pumice-stone cut, or a stone ground 3 but
the signs of effects produced in others conveyed by the
sight cause those very effects in ourselves ? For our teeth
are set on edge when we see others eating anything bitter,
and some people faint when they see any one being
strangled. Is it because every sound or noise is a breath, 4
and this penetrating into us naturally causes disturbance ? 15
Now it will cause greater disturbance if it comes either in
great quantity or with an unusually violent impact, setting
up a new condition or causing some alteration within us.
Wherefore breaths 5 which, though large in bulk, are yet
soft, stir the actual seat of sensation, and such have a plea
sant effect ; but those which are rough, causing a violent
impact, shake the seat of sensation and affect a wide area 20
owing to the force of their impact. Now things which are
cold also affect a wide area, for coldness is a kind of force ;
therefore, as has been already said, it causes shuddering.
But things which are rough, because they cause a series of
frequent impacts, striking on the base of the hair thrust

it in the opposite direction ; G for when the hair is thrust
out, its ends must necessarily assume a contrary position, 25
with the result that it stands upright ; for hair always
naturally lies flat. The direction taken by the breath

1 Cp. 95i a 4ff-

2 (ppirrfiv covers the meanings both of trembling or shuddering and
of the hair standing on end.

3 Cp. Q64 b 35 fF. 4 i. e. sound-vibration.

fi Cp. 87 i a 33, 889* 28. i. e. outwards from the head.

886 b PROBLEMATA

which is conveyed to the body by the hearing is downwards
from above. The sounds, therefore, which we have men
tioned l being harsh, the hair bristles for the reasons stated.
The bristling occurs more on the rest of the body than on
30 the head, because the hair there is weaker and the effect
produced is weaker. The sensation produced by hearing
being blunter than that produced by sight, the effects
produced by it are confined to the surface of the body ;
the bristling of the hair is an effect of this kind, so it occurs
35 from many dissimilar causes. The sensation produced by
sight being very distinct, its results too are correspondingly
more distinct ; therefore the effects actually 2 occurring in
others are reproduced in those who observe them, but
887 a more mildly than in the original. 3 But as a result of
hearing our hair stands on end for fear, not of the actual
sounds, but of the anticipation which they arouse ; for it
is an anticipation of grievous ill.

Why is yawning caused by the sight of others yawning, 4 6
5 and so also the passing of urine, particularly in beasts of
burden ? Is it due to recollection ? For when recollection
occurs the part of the body concerned is stimulated. In
men then, because their sensations are finer, when they
see something stimulation and recollection occur simul
taneously. But in the beasts the sight is not sufficient
by itself, but they require another sense to be called into
10 activity ; so the sense of smell must also be employed, this
being a more easily stimulated sense in unreasoning animals.
So the other animals always pass urine in the same spot
as the first one ; for the stimulus is most acute when the
sense of smell is employed ; and the sense of smell is called
in play when they are near the spot.

15 Why is it that when we see any one cut or burned or 7
tortured or undergoing any other painful suffering, we
share mentally in his pain ? Is it because nature is common

1 Cp. 11. 10, ii above.

2 Reading with Bonitz aura for mvra, cp. above, 1. 12.

3 As in the example given in 886 b 12-14, viz. fainting as the result
of seeing a person strangled.

4 Cp. chapters I and 2.

BOOK VII. 7 887*

to us all, and it is this which shares in the sufferer s pain,
when we see any of these things happening to him, through
kinship with him ? Or is it because, just as the nose and
hearing according to their particular faculties receive certain 20
emanations, so also the sight does the same as the result of
things pleasant and painful ?

8 Why is it that those who come into contact with phthisis
or ophthalmia or scurvy become affected by them, but there
is no contagion from dropsy or fevers or apoplexy and the
rest ? In ophthalmia is contagion due to the fact that 25
the eye is very easily affected and more than the other
senses assimilates itself to that which it sees for example,
it moves when it sees something else moved and so it
very readily becomes disordered when it sees another eye
in that condition ? In phthisis is the contagion due to the
fact that phthisis makes the breath weak and laboured,
and those diseases are most quickly contracted which are
due to the corruption of the breath, as is seen in plagues ?
He therefore who comes into contact with the sufferer 30
inhales this corrupted breath, and so himself becomes ill,
because the breath is unhealthy ; and he catches the disease
from one person only, because that person exhales this
particular breath, which is different from that which others
exhale ; and he catches the same disease, because, in inhaling
the breath l by which he becomes infected, he is inhaling
just such breath as he would if he were already suffering
from the disease. Scurvy alone is catching among similar
diseases, 2 such as leprosy and the like, because it affects
the surface of the body and causes a glutinous discharge 35
(for this is the nature of itching diseases), and so this
disease, 3 being on the surface of the body and glutinous }
can be conveyed by contact. Other similar diseases are
not so conveyed, because either they are not on the

1 Reading rouro for rourw, but the corruption of the text has
probably gone farther than this and some such reading as rfjv uvrfjv de
i-6arov rouro) 09 av (icrdevrjiTr), on avtnrvfl KT\. is perhaps nearer to the
original : he catches the same disease as the sick man, because he is
inhaling , c.

2 Reading /uo i/oi/ with the best MSS.

3 Reading avTrj (Richards).

887 a PROBLEMATA

surface, or else, being on the surface, they do not remain
there, because they are dry.

88y b Why do purslane and salt stop inflammation of the 9
gums ? J Is it because purslane contains some moisture ?
This is seen to be so if one chews it or if it be crushed
together 2 for some time ; for the moisture is then drawn
out of it. The glutinous matter sinks into the gum and
draws out the acidity. For that there is an affinity between
5 the disease and the remedy is shown by the acidity ; for
the juice of the purslane has a certain acidity. Salt, on
the other hand, dissolves and draws out the acidity. Why
then do lye and soda not have this effect ? Is it because
they have an astringent instead of a dissolvent effect ?

1 This problem occurs also in i. 38, where see notes.
^ Reading crwdXaadf] for awredfj, see note on 863** 13.

BOOK VIII

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH CHILL AND
SHIVERING.

1 WHY is it that those who are chilled become livid ? 10
Is it because the blood is congealed by the cold and, as

it congeals, becomes black through the absence of heat ?
(A white colour, on the other hand, is to be attributed to
fire.) For this reason also the flesh of the aged is par
ticularly livid, because it contains very little heat.

2 Why is it that those who are chilled cannot sleep ? l Is 1 5
it because any one who is chilled tends to hold his breath,
but a sleeper exhales rather than inhales, so that it is
difficult for one who is cold to sleep, since it is impossible
to do contrary things simultaneously ?

3 Why is it that those who are ill or in pain or angry
become more active under the influence of cold ? Is it 20
because a cold condition makes a man stronger ?

4 Why is it that athletes in good training do not bear the
cold well ? 2 Is it because their condition is clean and airy
and free from fat ? Such a condition is easily accessible
to the air, since it is permeable and does not contain any
heat ; fat, on the other hand, is hot, unless it is saturated 25
with moisture.

5 Why are the extremities most affected by cold ? Is it
due to their narrow shape ? Also the ducts in them, being
narrow, hold little blood, and therefore little heat ; for the
blood is hot.

6 Why are the feet more liable to become chilled when
they are suspended in mid air ? Is it because the wind
blows more underneath then ? Or is it because the blood 30
is contracted into a narrower space below, and so the rest

1 Cp. chapter 22. 2 Cp. chapter 10.

887 b PROBLEMATA

of the foot is more easily chilled, because the heat
leaves it ?

Why is it that stout persons are especially liable to chill, 7
although fat is warm ? Is it because, owing to the great
ness of their bulk, their extreme parts are far from the
internal heat, while their near parts are far from the
external cold ?

35 Why do people shiver after sneezing and after passing 8
urine ? l Is it because in both processes the veins are
emptied, and when they are empty the cold air enters, and
this causes shivering ?

Why is it that ravenous hunger is felt in cold weather 9
and in winter rather than in summer ? Is it because
888 a ravenous hunger is brought on through lack of dry nourish
ment, and in the cold and winter the internal heat contracts
into a narrower space and its internal nourishment soon
fails, and when this happens ravenous hunger is more
likely to occur? The faintness and weakness due to

5 ravenous hunger occur when liquefaction takes place in
the body owing to the collection of heat in one place. This
liquefied matter flows into the region usually occupied by
the nourishment and itself becomes nourishment for the
body; if it attacks the seat of respiration, loss of voice and
weakness ensue, the loss of voice being due to the obstruc
tion of the passage of the breath, while the weakness is

10 caused by the lack of nourishment in the body and internal
liquefaction. Treatment in such cases can be quickly and
simply applied, because the cause of the trouble is external ;
for it is the external 2 cold making our heat contract which
causes the ravenous hunger. So just as one trembles and
turns pale from fear, but, when freed 3 from the danger,

i 5 one recovers immediately ; so too those who are suffering
from ravenous hunger, after taking a little bread, quickly
recover, 4 having undergone a violent and unnatural dis-

1 This problem is almost identical with xxxiii. 16.

2 Reading curbs (W. D. R.) for ei/ror.

3 Reading afa&tvres for a<j)tvTfs (so also Richards).

4 Kai of ftou\inia)VTfS . . . ra^ela f) aitOK.aTa(TTaais ylvtrai is an anacolll-
thon for oi /3.

BOOK VIII. 9 888

turbance, but not having been permanently injured thereby ;
for the same thing- which resists the tendency l of nature also
restores us to our natural course. Once relax the force
which is straining against nature, and the body slips back
into its natural state as suddenly as children who are 20
playing at * tug-of-war with a rope, if the rope is let go,
fall on their backs.

10 Why is it that those who have undergone athletic train
ing do not bear the cold so well as those who have not
done so ? 2 Is it because the fat is got rid of by their
exercises, and it is the fat which gives warmth, since that
which is oily is hot ? Or is it because the body is in a 25
more airy and rare condition, because the fat and the
excretions have been got rid of, so that there is nothing
to keep out the cold ? Or is it because through the opening 3
of the pores by perspiration a number of doors are as it
were removed ? 4 It is clear that the same condition does
not conduce both to health and to strength ; for obviously
a condition of health is one of fatness, while a condition 30
of strength is a state of rarity.

11 Why do we shiver both when hot and when cold water
is poured over us ? For it is strange that contraries should
produce the same result. Is it because, when cold water
is poured over us, 5 the extinguishing of the internal heat
causes shivering, whereas, as the effect of warm water, the
superficial cold is enclosed 6 in one place and massed to- 35
gether by its inward rush ? 7 So both effects are due to
the same cause, but in one case it operates from within and
in the other from without.

12 Why do the hairs bristle upon the skin ? 8 Is it because
they naturally stand erect when the skin is contracted, and

1 Reading r// . . . dyatyrj. 2 Cp. chapter 4.

3 It is doubtful whether nTrocrro/zaxrtv, a word apparently only occur
ring here, can mean opening , since the verb QTroo-ro^oCj/ means to
stop up ; avaa-Tofioxriv should therefore probably be read.

4 And so let in the cold.

5 Reading Tr/jofrxeo^ievoip for TT/JOO xeo/xfZ ot.

6 See note on 86; b 32. 7 Cp. de Somno, 457** 14-17.

8 This problem is repeated in xxxv. 5 ; the same subject is treated
in chapters 15 and 21 below.

888 a PROBLEMATA

40 this contraction occurs owing to cold and certain other
conditions ?

888 b Why is it that one shivers at the last emission of urine ? 13
Is it because, whilst the warm liquid is still within, the
bladder and the passages round it are full, but when it has
passed out they fill up l again with cold air, for nothing
can be empty, but must be full either of something corporeal
5 or of air ? Inasmuch then as cold air enters, shivering is
a natural result.

Why is it that the tongue of those who are chilled, like 14
that of the drunken, stumbles? Is it because, as it stiffens
and hardens with the cold, it becomes difficult to move,
and, when this happens, it cannot speak plainly ? Or is it

10 because, the outer parts of the body being solidified by
the cold, the moisture flows together within and saturates
the tongue, and so it cannot perform its function, as has
been already described in the case of the drunken ? 2 Or
is it because owing to the trembling produced by chill,
the movement of the tongue is irregular and it cannot

15 articulate the words which it utters, and consequently it
stumbles ?

Why do the hairs stand erect on the bodies of those 15
who are chilled ? 3 Is it because as a result of cooling
the heat collects in the inner region of the body, and the
flesh, as the heat leaves it, contracts more and more, and,
as it is drawn together, the hairs become more upright ?
20 [Or is it because . . .] 4

Why in the winter are we more likely to become chilled 16
through running than through standing still ? Is it because
the air surrounding the body, when we stand still, no
longer causes discomfort when once the body is thoroughly
warm, but on the other hand, when we are running, we are
continually encountering more and more cold air, and so
25 are more liable to become chilled ? Moreover also air is

1 Reading fvenXrjo-Qev.

2 Cp. 875 b 27 ff. 3 Cp. chapters 12 and 21.
4 A further reason has been accidentally omitted.

BOOK VIII. 16 888 b

cold when it is in motion, and it is for the most part such
air that meets us in running 1 .

17 Why is it that it is colder at dawn, although l the sun
is nearer to us ? Is it because the period of the sun s
absence is then at its longest, so that the earth has become
more cooled ? Or is it because towards daybreak the dew
falls, as does the hoar-frost, and both of these are cold ? 3
Or do they too fall because the heat which rises from the
earth is overpowered, the reason that it is overpowered
being the absence of the sun ? So that they do not fall
when the sun is farther away, but when it is nearer they
fall and become congealed, 2 because the longer the sun

is absent the cooler the ground becomes. 3 Or is it because
the nocturnal breezes tend to cause cold 4 towards day- 35
break ? Or do we only imagine that it is colder because
then the food within us is concocted and, the stomach
being emptier, we are more liable to feel the cold ? This
can be illustrated by the fact that we feel very cold after
vomiting.

18 Why is it that those who are chilled feel pain if they
are taken straight to the fire, whereas they do not do so

if they are warmed gradually ? Is it because one contrary 40
immediately succeeding another contrary always sets up 88g a
a violent change ? We may compare the fact that if one
bends a tree by degrees, it does not suffer, but if one bends
it with greater violence and not gradually, it breaks off.
If therefore like is unaffected by like, and the heat of
a man who is chilled collects and concentrates within him, 5
and the moisture and cold are left behind, and a contrary
is destructive of its contrary, it follows that, if one is
warmed by degrees, the heat comes out gradually and less

1 Omitting r),or else reading q (^UKTO?) from 938 a 32, where the same
problem is treated more briefly ; cp. below, 1. 33, which clearly states
that the dew and the hoar-frost, which fall at dawn, fall when the sun
is near the earth. T. G. renders cur tempore matutino frigus acrius
est, cum tamen sol propius adsit ?

2 Putting a comma after miyvvTai instead of a semicolon.

3 i.e. it so happens that the time when the clew and hoar-frost fall
is the time when the sun is nearest to the earth, but the cause is not
the position of the sun but the fact that the ground is coldest at dawn.

4 Reading, with Richards, nv^v^ara {nirui) rijs x//u|ecuy.

88g a PROBLEMATA

pain is caused, but, if the warming is not gradual, the
heat is rather drawn out. 1

10 Why is it that when we are chilled the same heat causes 19
more burning and pain ? 2 Is it because owing to its
density the flesh holds the heat which comes into contact
with it ? This is the reason why lead becomes hotter than
wool. Or is the passage of the heat violent because the
pores are congealed by the cold ?

15 Why is it that those who are angry do not become 20
cold ? Is it because anger and wrath are the opposite
of cowardice ? Now anger is the result of fiery heat, for
by retaining a large quantity of fiery heat within us we
become warm. This is particularly noticeable in children.
For grown-up men when angry become distracted, 3 but
children first of all take in breath in large quantities and

20 then blush ; for the amount of heat in them being very
great and causing liquefaction makes them blush, since,
if one were to pour a quantity of cold water on them, they
would cease 4 from their wrath, for their heat would be
quenched. The opposite occurs in cowards and those
who are afraid ; 5 for they are chilled and become cold

25 and pale ; for the heat leaves the superficial region of
their bodies.

Why is it that when we shiver, the hairs stand erect ? 6 21

Do they lie down 7 because they grow in moisture ? For

the weight 8 of the hair prevails over the moisture. Now

shivering is caused by the cold, for the cold naturally

30 congeals the moisture. When therefore the moisture, out

1 The text of the whole of this passage is unsatisfactory though the
general meaning is plain.

2 i. e. more than it would if we were not chilled. This problem is
repeated in xxxvii. 4.

3 It is improbable that /SAaTrroimu can mean this by itself without
the addition of mis $peVi or something similar ; it is almost certainly
corrupt. Some verb meaning suppress their feelings or escape
notice would be expected. T. G. does not render oi /zeV yap

4 Reading Trauo-au/r av (Richards).

5 The Teubner text prints (po^ov^vo for

6 Cp. chapters 12 and 15.

7 Reading KaraKexXivrat (W. D. R.) for KaraKeifXelaOai, Cp. below, 1. 35.

8 Reading, with Bonitz, /3dpos for /3a#o?, cp. below, 1. 34.

BOOK VIII. 21 88g 5

of which the hair grows, undergoes a change and congeals,
it is natural that the hair should undergo a change also.
If therefore it changes into a contrary condition, it either
remains permanently in that condition, or else the hair
will again prevail over the moisture. It is not, however,
likely that the hair can by its weight overpower the
moisture when it is congealed and condensed ; and if it is
impossible for the hair to lie down anywhere because the 35
moisture is congealed, the only thing left for it to do is
to stand erect. Or is it because, as a result of cooling,
the heat collects in the interior region of the body, and
the flesh, as the heat leaves it, contracts more and more,
and, as it draws together, the hair grows more upright, 1
just as when one fixes a twig or some other object into
the ground and fills the space round it and collects the
soil on every side, it is more likely to remain erect than if
one leaves the soil loose round it ?

22 Why is it that those who are chilled find it particularly
difficult to go to sleep ? 2 Is it because one who is chilled
holds his breath rather than exhales, and a sleeper exhales 5
rather than inhales ? Chill therefore induces a condition
which is directly opposed to sleep.

1 Down to this point the sentence is a repetition of 888 b 17-21.

2 Cp. chapter 2

H

BOOK IX

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH BRUISES,
SCARS, AND WEALS 1

10 WHY is it that weals can be prevented by the application I
of newly flayed hides, particularly those of rams, and by
breaking- eggs over the part affected ? Is it because both
these things prevent the collection of moisture and the
consequent swelling ? For the wounded place attracts the
moisture and swells owing to the inflammation. 2 Now
eggs owing to their glutinous consistency cause adhesion

15 and prevent swelling (their effect resembling that of
cautery 3 ), acting as a kind of glue. The hide owing to its
glutinous condition adheres and at the same time by its
heat sets up concoction and stops the inflammation, for they
do not remove it for several days. Rubbing with salt and
vinegar is also employed with the object of drawing out the
inflammation.

20 Why is it that scars are black on the rest of the body but 2
white on the eye ? 4 Is it because a scar, like everything
else which is diseased, takes on the contrary of its original
colour, and it is in the black part of the eye that wounds
are inflicted ? However, scars on the body do not become

25 black immediately, but are white at first ; nor are scars in the
eye always white," but it is only after a while that they
become absolutely or comparatively so.

Why does a fennel-stalk 6 make the parts round the place 3
which is struck red and the centre of it white ? Is it

1 Some MSS. read rpau/iara, wounds, for /LicbAeoTros-.

2 Bekker s reading eA*ei eVmperai makes no sense. T. G. renders
pars enim collisa humorem trahit intumescitque. We clearly should
read e\/a (TO vypbv /cat) eVrnperat, the omission being due to homoeote-
leuton. The sentence then explains rrjv adpoia-iv rov vypov *at T/)J/
(Trapa-iv of the previous sentence. 3 Cp. 862 a 10, n.

4 This subject is also treated in chapter 7.

5 Reading MvKai for /Lte Xatvai (Bonitz).

" Fennel-stalks were used as canes by ancient schoolmasters, cp.
Xen. Cyrop. ii. 3. 20.

BOOK IX. 3 88g b

because it presses the blood away from the middle, at the
point where, being round, it strikes deepest ? Or would
one not expect the blood for this reason to return there
again, the redness being due to the rush of blood and such 3
a rush taking place towards the part which is struck ?

4 Why is it that, when a violent blow is struck with
a fennel-stalk, the middle of the flesh which is struck turns
white and the surrounding parts red, whereas, if an ordinary
stick is used, the middle is the reddest part ? l Is it because
the fennel-stalk owing to its lightness, if it strikes a hard
blow, disperses the blood on the surface, and so the part 35
from which the blood has retired has a white appearance,
but the parts to which it flows in greater quantities become
redder? When the part struck swells up, the dispersed
blood does not readily return to its place, because it is
scanty and the course which it must follow is upwards ; 2

for it needs the force imparted by mass to make it follow an 890*
unnatural course. But blows dealt with hard objects owing
to their weight and strength cause compression and crushing.
The compression, therefore, produces a hollow, while the
crushing causes rarity ; for crushing is a mild form of cutting
and cleaving. The middle of the part struck becoming 5
hollow and rare, the blood flows into it from the surrounding
surface ; for it naturally flows downwards and into the rare
parts, because they give way before it. The blood collecting
there naturally makes this part red, whilst the surrounding
regions, from which the blood retires, turn white.

5 Why do those who are splenetic have black scars ? Is it 10
because their blood is corrupted by the admixture of vitiated
and watery blood from the spleen ? Now the scar occupies
only a small depth of the skin on the surface, but the
blood, which is black because it is watery and hot, shows
through the skin and gives the scar also a black appearance.
Moreover, very often the scar meanwhile becomes blacker 15
and blacker ; this is due to the same cause, for owing to

1 A fuller and more satisfactory treatment of the problem of the
previous chapter.

2 i. e. the blood must flow uphill in order to reach the centre of the
swelling.

H 2

890 a PROBLEMATA

the weakness of the skin the blood cools, and as the heat
evaporates, turns blacker. Similarly in the aged the flesh
becomes blacker, 1 and their congenital scars are blacker
20 than those of the young ; for their whole body assumes as
it were the condition of a bruise owing not to the thinness
of their skin but to the fact that their heat fails.

Do things which cause the same effect possess the same 6
power for the production of that effect, or not? For

25 example, seeing that copper and radishes and mashed beans
and sea-lungs 2 and clay and various other things take
away bruises, do they do so in virtue of the same power ?
Or does copper produce this effect because of its rust, which
has a medicinal value, 3 and beans and sea-lungs and clay
because they have an attractive force owing to their rarity,

.5 and other things for various other reasons ? Or is the
ultimate effect the same in all these cases (for many of them
possess contrary qualities, for example heat and cold 4 ),
while the earlier effects may nevertheless be different ?

Why do all other scars turn black, while those in the eye 7
are white ? 5 Is it because they cause a change in respect
35 of colour in the parts in which they occur, and so scars
which occur in the eye, which is black, must necessarily be
white ?

Why is the blow of a fennel-stalk more painful than that 8
of some much harder instruments, if in dealing the blow
one considers their comparative effects ? For it would be
much more natural to suppose that the stroke of a harder
instrument would be more painful, for it deals a heavier
890 b blow. Is it because the flesh is pained not only by receiving
a blow but also by dealing one ? When it is struck by

1 Cp. 967 b i3ff.

2 Apparently the marine animal of de Part. Anim. 68 i a 18 and Hist.
Anim. 548* II.

3 For the supposed medicinal value of copper cp. 863 a 28 and note.

4 This is explained by 89o b 7-10, where particular examples are
given in illustration of the same problem. There the instances of
contraries are ^aX/tor, which is cold, and Ba^ria, which is hot. Of the
examples given in this chapter pcxfravls corresponds most nearly to

6a\l/ia.

6 Cp. above, chapter 2.

BOOK IX. 8 Sgo 1

hard substances, it only receives a blow (for it yields to
them because they are hard) ; but when it is struck by
a fennel-stalk, two effects are produced it receives a blow
and it also deals one, because it does not yield owing to the 5
lightness of the weight imposed upon it ; and so the blow
is of a double nature.

9 Why are thapsia l and metal ladles used to stop bruises,
(the former being applied immediately, the latter at a later
stage), containing as they do opposite qualities ? 2 For
a ladle is cold, as the poet says,

Between his teeth the chilly bronze he bit ; 3

whilst thapsia is hot and burning. Does the ladle have the 10
same effect that water has upon the fainting? For its
coldness encounters the heat and prevents it from escaping
out of the blood, which collects on the surface owing to the
blow and congeals when the heat passes out. For just as
would happen if it congealed outside, so the blood congeals
near the outer surface while it is still under the skin ; but 4 1 5
if the heat is prevented from escaping by the coldness of
the bronze, the blood does not congeal, but disperses again
and returns to the area from which it was collected.
Thapsia being hot has the same effect ; for by its heat it
prevents congelation.

10 Why are bruises dispersed by the application of copper 20
objects such as ladles and the like ? 5 Is it because copper is
cold ? It therefore prevents the escape of the heat from
the blood which collects as the result of the blow, and it is
the loss of heat from the surface which causes the bruise.
The ladle must therefore be applied quickly 6 before con
gelation takes place. Thapsia, too, mixed with honey is 25
a good remedy for the same reason ; for being hot it
prevents the blood from becoming cold.

1 Cp. 864* 5 and note.

2 Cp. above, chapter 6. ;! Homer, Iliad, v. 75.

4 Reading 6e fgicvm (W. D. R.) for dicgievat and putting a colon
before KooXu&Vor, and deleting the comma

5 Cp. above, chapter 9.

6 This hardly agrees with 89o b 8.

890* PROBLEMATA

Why is it that if a wound occurs several times in the II
same place, the scar turns black ? Is it because, whenever
a wound is dealt, the part affected is always weak and
30 becomes weaker the more often it is wounded ? Now that
which is weak is chilled and full of moisture ; therefore it
has a black appearance. Again 1 large and inveterate
wounds form black scars, and to receive frequent wounds is
equivalent to having one wound for a long time.

Why do we apply metal ladles to bruises ? 2 Is it because, 12
35 when we are struck, the part affected is cooled and the heat
leaves it ? So the application of the ladle, the material of
which, being copper, is cold, prevents the heat from escaping.

Why is it that hairs do not grow on scars ? Is it because 13
the pores, from which the hairs grow, become blocked up
and displaced ?

8gi a Why do blows cause swelling and discoloration ? Is it 14
because the moisture in the part affected is dispersed and,
after breaking its way into the adjoining regions, recoils
again and collects owing to the conglutination of the
moisture ? Also if any small veins are burst, a collection ot
5 bloodshot matter is formed.

1 Putting a full stop after Qaivcrai and reading ora () for ru
(C a according to Bekker reads etro).

2 Cp. above, chapters 9 and 10.

8gi

BOOK X
A SUMMARY OF PHYSICAL PROBLEMS

1 WHY is it that some animals cough, while others do not,
for example a man coughs, but an ox does not ? Is it
because in most animals the excretion is directed to some 10
other part, but in man to this part ? Or is it because in
man the matter in the brain is very copious and liquid, and
coughing occurs when phlegm flows down ?

2 Why is it that in man alone of the animals blood flows
from the nostrils ? Is it because the matter in his brain is
very copious and liquid, whence the veins, becoming full of
excretion, send forth a stream through the ducts? For 15
unhealthy blood (that is, blood which is mixed with excre
tions from the brain) is thinner than pure blood and
resembles lymph. 1

3 Why is it that some animals are fat under the flesh,
others in the flesh, and others in both these places ? Is it 20
because in those whose flesh is dense the moisture collects
between the skin and the flesh, because the skin there is
naturally loose, 2 and this moisture being concocted turns
into fat ? Those, on the other hand, who have rare flesh
and a tightly fitting 3 skin, become fat in the flesh; while
those who have both these characteristics are fat both in and 25
under the flesh.

4 Why are boys and women less liable to white leprosy
than men, and middled-aged women more than young ? Is
it because white leprosy is due to the escape of breath, and
the bodies of boys are dense and do not allow the passage
of breath, and those of women do so less than those of men, 30
for the breath is diverted into the catamenia ? The density

1 Cp. P. A. 65^17.

2 Reading diaToravrr} elvat. TO deppa a^eoros- 0u<rei (Bekker).

3 Reading with Bussemaker npoa-earos for

8gi a PROBLEMATA

of their flesh is shown by its smoothness. But the bodies
of middle-aged and old women allow the passage of breath ;
for they alone, like old buildings, have a loose structure of
their component parts.

35 Why is it that man alone has white leprosy ? 1 Is it 5
because he is the thinnest-skinned and at the same time the
fullest of breath 2 amongst the animals? An indication of
this is the fact that leprosy appears most abundantly and
soonest on the parts of the body where the skin is thinnest.
Or, while this is true, is there a further reason, namely, that
8gi b in man alone of the animals the hair turns grey ? For in
leprosy the hair becomes grey, 3 and so it is impossible for
leprosy to occur in those in whom the hair does not turn
grey.

Why is it that goats and sheep yield the most milk, 6
5 although their bodies are not the largest, whereas women
and cows produce proportionately less ? Is it because in
the latter two cases the available material is used up to form
bulk, whilst in the other animals it goes into excretions,
and in sheep and goats the residue of the excretion all
becomes milk ? Or is it because sheep and goats are more
prolific than the large animals, and so draw off more
10 excretion, because they have more offspring to nourish?
Or is it because owing to the weakness of their bodies more
excretion is formed during the period of gestation, and the
milk comes from the excretion ?

Why is it that in some animals (goats, for example) 7
a change of water causes a change in their colour, which
assimilates to that of other animals in the new locality,
15 whereas with other animals (man, for example) this is not
so ? Or, to put the question generally, why do some animals
change and others not (the crow, for example) ? Do those
animals not change in whom the element of moisture does
not predominate, birds, for example, which consequently
have no bladder ? 4 Why is it that while such creatures do

1 Cp. below, chapter 33.

2 Reading Tr^eu/zurcoSecrraTOZ (Richards).

3 Cp. G. A. 784* 26. 4 Cp. P. A. 671* 15 and W. Ogle s note.

BOOK X. 7 8gi b

not themselves change, yet their offspring do so ? Is it 20
because the offspring is weaker than its parents ?

8 Why are males usually larger than females ? Is it because
they are hotter, 1 and heat is productive of growth ? Or is
it because the male is complete in all its parts, whereas the
female is defective ? Or is it because the male takes a long
time to attain perfection, the female a short time ?

9 Why is it that some animals bear their young quickly, 25
but in others the period of gestation is a long one ? Is it
because the longer-lived animals come to perfection more
slowly ? It is the longer-lived animals that take a long time
to bear their young. This is not, however, true of the
longest lived of all animals ; for example, the horse is
slower in bearing its young but shorter-lived than man.
The reason of this is the hardness of the uterus ; for the 3
uterus of a mare may be compared to a dry soil which does
not readily bring the crops to maturity.

IO Why is it that the young of all other animals resemble
their parents in nature more closely than do those of man ?
Is it because man s mental condition is more varied at the
moment of sexual intercourse, and so the offspring varies
according to the condition of the male 2 and female parents ? 35
The other animals, or most of them, are wholly absorbed in
the sexual act ; 3 further, owing to this avidity, impregnation
does not usually take place.

11 Why is it that fair men and white horses usually have 892
grey eyes ? Is it because there are three colours in eyes,
black, greenish, 4 and grey, and the colour of the eyes
follows that of the body, resulting in this case in greyness ? 5

12 For what reason are there dwarfs ? Or to put the question
more generally, why are some creatures quite large, others
small ? Let us examine the latter question. -The causes of
smallness are two, either space or nourishment space, if it

1 A much-disputed point, cp. P. A. 648* 30 ff.

2 The Teubner text prints ore for 6 re.

3 Reading irpos aurcp TOVTM (Richards).

4 Lit. as in goats eyes ; for the meaning of alywTros see D A. W.
Thompson s note on H. A. 492^ 3.

8g2 a PROBLEMATA

be narrow, and nourishment, if it be scanty ; as happens
fo when attempts are made to make animals small after their
birth, for example by keeping puppies in quail-cages.
Those who suffer from lack of space become pygmies ; for
they have width and depth corresponding to the dimensions
of their parents, but they are quite small in stature. The
reason of this is that owing to the narrowness of the space
15 in which they are confined the straight lines become crushed
and bent. So pygmies are like figures painted on shops
which are short in stature but are seen to be of ordinary
width and depth. Those who fail to come to perfection
from lack of nourishment clearly have the limbs of children,
20 and one sometimes sees persons who are very small and yet
perfectly proportioned, like Melitaean terriers. 1 The reason
is that the process of growth has a different effect from that
of space.

Why is it that some animals come into being from the 13
sexual intercourse of animals with one another, others
from the compounding of certain elements a process
resembling the original production of their species ? 2 Just

25 as the writers on natural phenomena explain the first
origin of animals as being due to powerful changes
and movements in the world and universe ; a so now, if
it is to happen again, some similar movements must
take place. 4 For the beginning of anything is the most

30 important part, being indeed half of the whole ; 5 and in
this case the seed is the beginning. The reason then why 6

1 Also mentioned in H. A. 6i2 b io, where D A. W. Thompson
renders * Maltese dogs ; but according to Pliny (N. H. iii. 26. 30)
they came originally from an island off Dalmatia (now called Meleda).
They were a common form of lap-dog ; cp. Theophr. Char. 21,
Anth. Pal. vii. 21 1. They frequently appear on vases, e.g. one
figured in Ann. del? Inst. 1852, which has the inscription MeXtratf,
and shows a long-haired dog with a bushy tail and a sharp nose,
rather of the type of a Spitz or Pomeranian : such dogs also figure
on coins and gems, see Imhoof-Blumer and Keller, Tier- und Pflan-
zenbilder des klass. Altertums, Plates I. 45 ; II. 29 ; XV. 33, 34.

* Cp. below, chapter 65.

3 Omitting the comma after yeveatiai and reading navrbs (ra?)
\as, OUTGO KCU v\v. 4 Putting a full stop after

5 Hesiod, Works and Days, 40.

5 Reading ainov (roC) Towvra (Richards).

BOOK X. 13 8g2 a

small animals which are not produced by sexual inter
course resemble the species as it originally came into
being, is the smallness of the seed ; for the smaller a thing
is, the smaller is its first beginning. So the changes even
of this are sufficient to produce a seed for it. 1 And this
is what actually happens ; for it is under conditions of 35
change 2 that such creatures usually come into being. In
the larger animals a greater change is necessary for their
production.

14 Why is it that some animals are prolific, such as the
pig, the dog, and the hare, whilst others are not so, for 8g2 b
instance man and the lion ? 3 Is it because the former
class has a number of wombs which they desire to fill and
moulds into which 4 the semen is distributed, while with

the latter the opposite is the case ?

15 Why has man a smaller distance between his eyes in
proportion to his size than any other animal ? Is it because 5
man follows the law of nature most closely 5 and perception
is naturally of that which is in front, 6 since it is necessary
to see beforehand that to which the movement is directed ?
Now the greater the distance between the eyes, the more
will the sight incline sideways. So if the sight is to accord
with the law of nature, the distance between the eyes 10
ought to be as small as possible, for then it will travel
most directly forward. Further, the other animals must
necessarily turn their gaze sideways, since they do not
possess hands ; their eyes therefore are farther apart, espe
cially those of sheep, because they generally advance
bending their heads downwards.

16 Why is it that the other animals seldom or never emit 15
semen during sleep ? Is it because no animal except man
sleeps on its back and no emission of semen takes place
except in that position ? 7 Or is it because the other

1 The text here appears to be corrupt and gives no very satisfactory
sense.

2 i. e. by decay, cp. G. A. 71 5 a 25. 3 Cp. G. A. 771*14 ff.
4 Reading eis d? (W. D.R.) 5 Cp. de Incess. Anim. 7o6 b 10.
n Reading TOV e^-rrpoa-dfv (so also Richards).

7 Cp. Theophr. de Lassit,, 16.

8 9 2 b PROBLEMATA

animals dream less than man, and the emission of semen
only takes place when the imagination is stirred ?

Why is it that some animals move their heads and others 17

20 not ? Is it because some have no necks l and so cannot
move their heads ?

Why does man sneeze more than the other animals ? 2 18
Is it because in him the ducts are wide through which
the breath and scent pass in ? For it is with these, when
they fill with breath, that he sneezes. That these ducts

25 are wide is shown by the fact that man has a weaker sense
of smell than any other animal ; and the narrower the
ducts, the keener is the sense of smell. Since, therefore,
the moisture, the evaporation of which causes sneezing,
enters in larger quantities and more often into wide ducts,
and man more than any other animal has such ducts, he
might naturally be expected to sneeze 3 most often. Or

30 is it because his nostrils are particularly short and so the
heated moisture can quickly turn into breath, whereas in
the other animals, owing to the length of their nostrils, it
cools before it can evaporate ?

Why is it that in no animal is the tongue of a fatty 19
consistency ? Is it because that which is fat is dense,
whereas the tongue is naturally rare in order that it may
35 recognize different flavours ?

Why is it that females pass urine with an effort, but 20
males without an effort ? Is it because in the female the
bladder is farther away both in depth of position and in
distance, since the womb is situated between the fundament
8g3 a and the bladder ? It therefore requires a greater effort
to drive the urine owing to the distance of the womb ; and
the requisite force is exercised by an effort of the breath.

Why is it that all such animals as do not fly shed their 21
winter coats, except the pig? The dog, for example,
5 does so, and the ox. Is it because the pig is very hot and

1 e.g. fishes and serpents, cp. P. A. 664*20, 686 a I, 69i b so.

2 This problem is more fully treated in chapter 54 ; it is repeated in
xxxiii. 10.

3 Reading nrapvvoivro for irrapvoivTo.

BOOK X. 21 893

its hairs grow out of a hot substance (for that which is
fat is hot) ? In the other animals the hair is shed because
either the moisture cools or else the natural heat cannot
concoct the 1 nourishment. But the pig 2 does not shed
its hair, either because the moisture in it undergoes no 10
change or because its nourishment is properly concocted ;
for whenever any cause is present to make it shed its hair,
the fat is sufficient to prevent it. Sheep and men are
unaffected owing to the quantity and density of their hair ;
for the cold cannot penetrate deep enough to congeal the 15
moisture or to prevent the heat from concocting it.

22 Why is it that in sheep the hair grows again softer
when it is plucked out, but in man it is harder? Is it
because the hair of sheep grows out of the surface, and
so can be plucked out without causing pain, the source 2 o
of its nourishment, which is in the flesh, remaining un
impaired ? So the pores ?> being opened, the excretions
evaporate more readily, and the wool receives the natural
nourishment of the flesh, the latter being fed by soft, sweet
nourishment. The hair of man, on the other hand, since
it grows from a great depth, can only be plucked out by 25
force and painfully. This is shown by the fact that it
draws blood with it. The place therefore from which it
is plucked is wounded and scarred. So at last the hair
ceases to grow on those who pluck it out, and as long
as it does grow again, it grows hard, because all the
nourishing food in the flesh fails, and it is from the excre- 30
tions of this food that the hair grows. This can be
illustrated by the fact that in all those who inhabit a
southerly clime the hair is hard, because the exterior heat
penetrates deeply and vaporizes the \vell-concocted nourish
ment ; but the hair of those who dwell in northern climes
is soft, because in them the blood and sweet humours are
nearer the surface, for which reason also they have a 35
healthy complexion.

1 Reading nerTciv (rr)i/) rpoc/)?^ (Bussemaker).

2 Reading (17 8e $) r) faa ...(*;) <5ui *rA. These changes are
demanded by the sense and supported by the Latin version of T. G.

3 avoLxdevTM seems to require a substantive such as T&V iropwv in
agreement with it. The Latin version renders meatibus patefactis.

893 a PROBLEMATA

Why is it that in sheep the longer the hair grows the 23
harder it is, whereas in man it is softer? Is it because
the hair of sheep, obtaining the nourishment described
above, 1 receives less food because it is far removed from
40 the source of it, and the nourishment already present in
893 b it easily evaporates out of it owing to the heat as a result
of incomplete concoction ? 2 And as the hair dries it
becomes harder ; 3 for it is the moisture which makes it
soft. Human hair, on the other hand, receives less nourish
ment but is situated nearer to the source of it ; * and the
nourishment is more thoroughly concocted because it is
less abundant, and, being concocted, it makes the hair
5 softer, because anything that is concocted is softer than
that which is unconcocted; for human hair is derived
more 5 from excretion than that of sheep. That concocted
matter is softer than unconcocted 6 is shown by the fact
that the wool of young sheep is softer than that of old.

10 Why is it that thick-haired men and birds with thick 24
feathers are lustful ? 7 Is it because they are naturally hot
and moist ? Now both these characteristics are necessary
for sexual intercourse ; for the heat causes excretion, and
the moisture is the form which the excretion takes. Lame
men are lustful for the same reason as birds ; s for, owing
to the deficiencies of their legs, the nourishment is carried

15 downwards in small quantities only, but travels into the

1 i. e. in 11. 22-4 above.

2 Reading dn-e^iW with Bussemaker.

3 Reading ovcXrjpdrfpai (T. G. has duriores).

4 The sentence nl 8e TWV avdpimr&v eXarro) p>ev, p.a\\ov 8e rr/s apx*j s is
obviously incomplete as it stands and the required sense must be
supplied from the Latin version of T. G. and the implied contrast with
the hair of sheep given in a 38 ff., and something like at 8s TWV

avOpo)7Tu>v eXaTTd) fj.ev (e^-ouo-i rrjv rpo(^i>}, fj.a\\ov 8c rfjs apx*l s (eyylov-
rat) must be restored.

5 Reading nXdov for TrXeto-rou.

6 This o-rjjjLflov cannot refer to the sentence immediately preceding
it, with which it has no connexion ; it must therefore refer to navra
yap ra TreTrf/^eva KT\ ; the Latin version of T. G. inverts the order of
the last two sentences.

7 This problem is partly identical with iv. 31 ; cp. also Physiogn.
So6 b 1 8.

8 Reading 8ta TO avro 8e KCU ot (opvides \dyvoi KCII 01) ^coX
cp. 88o b 4.

BOOK X. 24 893

upper region of the body in large quantities, and is there
converted into semen.

25 Why has man no mane ? Is it because he has a beard,
and so the nourishment consisting of the necessary excre
tion, which in animals goes into the mane, in man goes
into the beard ?

26 Why is it that all animals have an even number of 20
feet ? * Is it because it is impossible to move (except by
jumping), unless some part is at rest ? Since, then, pro
gression involves two things, 2 namely, movement and rest,
we immediately get here a pair 3 and an even number.
Quadrupeds have two more legs ; 4 for they move two,
while the other two are at rest. 5 Six- footed animals have 25
an additional pair, 6 of which one moves while the other

is at rest.

27 Why is it that in horses and asses hair grows out of
scars, but not in man ? ; Is it because in the other animals
the skin is part of the flesh, but in man it is only as it
were a condition of the flesh ? For in man the surface 30
of the flesh seems to become harder through cooling and
resembles what we call the crust of boiled meal; 8 just,
then, as this crust is really only boiled meal, so what is
called man s skin would really be only flesh. Now when

a man receives a wound or is chafed, the result is that
his flesh becomes denser ; and so, the surface of the flesh 35
having undergone a change, the wounded parts do not
assume the same nature as the original skin ; and, as the
flesh has undergone a change, it is not to be wondered
at that what grew from it no longer does so a pheno
menon also occurring in what is called baldness, which

1 Cp. below, chapter 30 ; also H. A. 489^22, and de Incessu Anim.
7o8 a 2i ff., which is clearly the source of this problem.

Reading C K 8volv nvolv avdyKr/ rfjv nopelav tlvai.
8 de must be omitted as a dittograph of dvo.

4 Reading Kal rerpuTroSa 8vo en (for Siori) irXeiovs, Cp. 1. 25.

5 Placing a full- stop after eW^/mo-i.

6 ol e is clearly corrupt, since 01 can only agree with nodes under
stood, which gives no sense. 01 is perhaps a corruption due to the
influence of ol 8e 8vo. What the sense requires is KOI e^diroda KOI tiXXovs
dvo TI, and this has been translated above.

7 Cp. below, chapter 29. 8 Cp. G. A. 743 b 7.

8g3 b PROBLEMATA

is also due to a corruption and change in the surface of
40 the flesh. When, however, beasts of burden have been
chafed and recover again, the parts of the body affected
fill out again with the same substance, but it is weaker
than it was before ; and since their skin too is a part
of them, the hair (which grows out of the skin) must
come forth and grow, but it is white, because the skin
5 which was formed is weaker than the original skin, and
white hair is the weakest kind of hair.

Why is it that among the other animals twins though 28
differing in sex are just as likely to survive, but this is
not so with the young of man? 1 Is it because human
twins are particularly weak, for man naturally produces
10 only one offspring at a time ? Now in twins it is unnatural
to find a diversity of sex ; and so what is most contrary
to nature is also weakest.

Why is it that in horses and asses hair grows out of 29
scars, but not in man ? 2 Is it because the scar impedes
the growth of the hair, either owing to the condensation
of the flesh or because its nutrition is impaired ? In man,
15 therefore, it absolutely prevents the growth owing to the
weakness of the hair ; but in horses it does not prevent,
but merely impairs, the growth.

Why have animals an even number of feet? 3 Is it 30
because in anything that moves something must necessarily
be at rest, and this could not happen if there were an odd
20 number of feet (for 4 it was the arrangement of the feet in
pairs which originally made movement possible) ?

Why is it that animals are asleep for a shorter time than 31
they are awake, and their sleep is not continuous ? Is it
because all the excretion is not concocted at the same
time, but, when some is concocted, the animal is relieved
and wakes up ? Again, they more often wake up when
the region in which the excretion is concocted becomes
25 cold ; for it quickly and frequently ceases to do its work,

1 Cp. //. A. 584 b s6 ff. 2 Cp. above, chapter 27.

3 Cp. above, chapter 26. 4 Reading einep for onep (Richards).

BOOK X. 31

and this cessation causes awakening. Sleep not unnatu
rally l seems to be pleasant, because it gives us rest ; but
the rest which we take in sleep does not last longer than
the time taken by our natural activities, nor do we eat for
a longer period than that during which we abstain from
food, in spite of the fact that eating is pleasanter than fasting.

32 Why is it that some animals imitate their parents imme- 30
diately after birth, whilst others, like man, do so late,
or hardly at all, or never? Is it because some quickly
attain a state of physical perfection, 2 whilst others are late
in doing so, and some are without a perception of what

is for their good, whilst others possess such a perception ?
Those therefore which possess both these qualities, namely,
perception of what is for their good and physical perfec- 35
tion, imitate their parents, but those who have not both
these qualities do not do so ; for physical and perceptive
powers are both requisite.

33 Why is it that white leprosy does not occur in animals
other than man ? :i Is it because, while it is a disease which
afflicts other animals, only in man does the hair and skin turn
partially white ? (But, if so, one might raise the question
why diversity of colour in animals occurs at birth and not
afterwards.) Or is it because the skin of other animals is
hard, whereas man has naturally very thin skin ? Now white
leprosy is an excretion of breath, 4 which in the other animals
is prevented from escaping by the thickness of their skin. 5

34 Why is it that in white leprosy the hair turns grey, but
it does not necessarily follow that leprosy is always present
where there is grey hair ? 5 Is it because the hair grows
from the skin, and greyness is as it were a corruption of the
hair ? When therefore the skin is in a morbid condition,
the hair that grows from it is necessarily affected ; but when 10
the hair is unhealthy the skin is not necessarily so.

1 Reading us duos for ov8e \os : the Latin version renders non
immerito.

2 TO yva>pieiv is certainly corrupt and has probably come into the
text as a gloss upon aicrdqaiv. r/}r 67rire\eorij/ rou an paras or its equivalent
must be restored from 1. 35. (Richards suggests TO /3<i& r.)

3 Cp. above, chapter 5. 4 Cp. 891*28.
8 The source of this problem appears to be G. A. 784*25.

894 b PROBLEMATA

Why is it that some animals are ill-tempered after bearing- 35
young, dogs, for example, and pigs, but others are not
noticeably so, for instance women and sheep ? Is it because
those animals which are full of excretions 1 are mild-
tempered, for that which causes them pain passes out at the
15 time of birth ? Those, 2 on the other hand, who in bearing
young lose healthy material, are made irritable by the
reduced condition in which they are ; just as hens are bad-
tempered, not just when they have laid, but when they are
sitting, from want of food.

Why is it that eunuchs, when they are emasculated, in 38
20 other respects change into the likeness of the female, for
they have the voice, the shapelessness, 3 and the looseness of
joints which characterize women, and so undergo a violent
change, as do other animals when castrated (in bulls and
rams, however, we find the horns assuming contrary forms,
the reason being that their females have contrary kinds of
25 horns, and so bulls when they are castrated grow larger
horns and rams smaller horns) in respect of size, however,
alone eunuchs change into the likeness of the male, for they
become larger ? Now size is characteristic of the male, for
the female is smaller than the male. Or is it not after all
a change into the likeness of the female rather than the
male ? For it is not a change in every dimension, but only
in height, whereas the male is characterized by width and
30 depth as well ; for this is what his full growth involves.
Furthermore, as is the female to the male, so within the
female sex is the maiden to the woman ; for the latter has
reached the full nobility of form, while the former has not
yet done so. It is into the likeness of their nature 4 then
that the eunuch changes ; for their growth is in height.
So Homer well says,

Stature chaste Artemis gave them, 5

1 Such as women and sheep, cp. H.A. 584* 6.

2 Omitting wore or reading TOVTOIS in its place.

8 X* clearly preserves the right reading here, a^op^lav. ogvrrjTa has
come into the text as a gloss upon (f)a)ff}v 6rj\vKrjv.

4 Reading ets- rrjv TOVTMV ovi> (<frv<nv} /neret/SaXXfi (Richards).

5 Homer, Od. xx. 71.

BOOK X. 36 8 94 l

as being able to give what, being a maiden, she herself 35
possessed. When, therefore, a eunuch changes in size, he
does not change into the likeness of the male ; for the change
is not in the direction of physical perfection, but eunuchs
increase in size only in respect of height.

37 Why is it that eunuchs either never suffer from varicocele,

or do so less than others ? Is it because, by their being 895*
castrated, their nature changes into that of persons lack
ing generative power? Now boys and women lack this
power, and neither has varicose veins except women very
occasionally.

38 Why is man better able to utter many voices, while other 5
animals of one and the same species utter only one voice ?
Has man too 1 really only one voice, but many forms of
speech ? 2

39 And why has man different forms of speech in different
places, 3 while the other animals have not ? Is it because men
in their speech make use of a number of letters, but the other
animals employ either none or only two or three consonants ?
(Now it is consonants combined with vowels that form i
speech.) Now speaking is signifying something not merely
by the voice but by certain conditions of the voice, and not
merely to signify pain or pleasure; and it is the letters
which regulate these conditions. But children express what
they want to say just in the same way as wild beasts ; for
young children cannot yet make use of the letters in speech.

40 Why is it that of all animals man alone is apt to hesitate 15
in his speech ? 4 Is it because he is also liable to be dumb,
and hesitancy of speech is a form of dumbness, or at any
rate the organ of speech is not perfect ? Or is it because
man partakes more of rational speech, while the other
animals only possess voice, and hesitancy of speech, as its

1 Reading (?}) KCIL KT\. (So also Richards.) T. G. has an hominum
etiam vox una est ?

2 On 8ut\KTos and cfrwvt) see 898 b 30, and cp. H. A. 536 b I.

3 Reading mm? <aAX?;> a\\rj (W. D. R.).

4 Cp. below, Book xi. 55.

I 2

8g5 a PROBLEMATA

name implies, 1 is simply 2 being unable to explain one s
meaning- continuously ?

20 Why is it that man more than the other animals is apt to 41
be lame from birth ? Is it because the legs of animals are
strong (for quadrupeds and birds have bony and sinewy
legs), but human legs are fleshy, and so owing to their
softness they more easily become damaged through move
ment ? 3 Or is it because in man alone of animals the period

25 of gestation varies ? For he may be born after the seventh
or the eighth or the tenth month. 4 For the other animals
there is one fixed time for coming to perfection without any
further delay ; 5 but in man the period of delay 6 is long,
and so, when the foetus moves, its extremities being soft

3 o are more 7 liable to become broken in the longer period.

Why have eunuchs sore and ulcerated legs ? Is it because 4 2
this is also characteristic of women, and eunuchs are
effeminate ? Or, while this is true, is the cause in women
as well this, that the heat has a downward tendency?
(Menstruation shows that this is so.) So neither eunuchs
35 nor women grow thick hair, owing to the presence of copious
moisture in them.

Why is it that no animal except man suffers from gall- 43
stones ? 8 Is it because in beasts of burden and cloven-hoofed
animals the ducts of the bladder are wide ? Those animals
which produce their young alive not immediately but after
an interval, like certain of the fishes, 9 never have bladders,
but the sediment which might form gall-stones is forced
into the bowels (as happens also in birds), and so easily
passes out with the excrement. But man has a bladder and
a stalk 10 to the bladder, which is narrow in proportion to his

3 i.e. layoff) atvos from i&xeiv and (^ooz^, cp. 93 a 3^ ^ to^vo^ojvoi

{(rxovTciL TOV ^coretf.

2 Reading Kara TO oVofia ovdev r; ot> for ou Kara TO ovn^a ev TJ oiide.

3 i. e. in the uterus before birth.

4 Cp. G. A. 772 b 7 ff. 5 Reading ou Smrp/f nat (Richards).
G eV TrX^et, if retained, must be used here of time, but some such

reading as ev rfj /Lu ?T/;g, in the uterus , seems to be demanded by the
context. (Richards makes the same suggestion.)

7 Reading TrXeiov for TrXetw. 8 Cp. G. A. 519^ 20.

9 Cp. P. A. 670* 10, 671* 15, 676 a 30.
10 Cp. ^.^.497^20, 24.

BOOK X. 43

size ; so, because he has this part, the earthy matter is 5
forced into the bladder (and so chamber-pots become
discoloured by it) and, owing to the heat in that region, it
becomes concocted and thickens still more and remains
there and increases owing to the narrowness of the urethra ;
for the earthy sediment, being unable to make its way out 10
easily, coheres together and forms a gall-stone.

44 Why is it that beasts of burden and cattle and horned
animals and birds do not eruct ? l Is it owing to the dryness
of their stomachs ? For the moisture is quickly used up
and percolates through ; whereas eructation results when
the moisture remains and evaporates. In animals with long I5
manes and tails, 2 owing to the length of their necks, the
breath tends to travel downwards, and therefore they
generally break wind backwards. Birds and horned
animals neither eruct nor break wind ; and ruminating
animals do not eruct, because they have several stomachs
and the so-called reticulum ; 3 and so the breath finds

a passage up and down through many channels, and the 20
moisture is taken up before it can become vaporized and
cause either eructation or breaking of wind.

45 Why is it that tame animals are invariably found also in
a wild state, but wild animals are not always found also
in a tame condition ? 4 For even men certainly exist in

a wild state in some places, 5 and wild dogs are found in 25
India and horses elsewhere; but lions and leopards and
vipers and many other animals are never found in a tame
state. Is it because the inferior condition is more easily
acquired at first and it is easier to degenerate into it, since it
is not the original but the ultimate nature which is difficult
to attain to at once ? G For this reason all tame animals are

1 This problem is quoted by Apollonius, Hist. Mirab., as from the
(frvariKa irpofiXrifjiaTa of Aristotle.

a This class is enumerated in H.A. 49i a I ff.

3 Or second stomach , see H.A. 507^-8. 4 Cp. H.A. 488 a 30.

5 Cp. P. A. 643 b 5 (but in H.A. 488 a 27 man is said never to be
wild ). Darwin (Descent of Man, pp. 41, 42) insists on the fact that
it is erroneous to regard man as more domesticated than the other
animals.

c This statement seems to contain a glimmering of the Doctrine of
Evolution.

895 b PROBLEMATA

3 o at first wild rather than tame (for example the child is
greedier and more quick-tempered than the man), but
physically weaker. So we find the same state of affairs in
the products of nature as in those of the arts. For among
the latter there are always badly made objects, and the bad
are more numerous than the good, beds for instance and

35 garments and the like ; and, where a good object is produced,
it is always possible to find also a bad one, but, where a bad
object is produced, it is not also possible always to find
a good one. This can be seen from an examination of the
works of the primitive painters and sculptors ; for in their
day there was not yet any good painting or sculpture any
where, but only inferior work. So likewise nature always
8g6 a produces inferior specimens and in a greater number, 1 and
superior specimens in a smaller number and in some cases
not at all. Now the tame is superior and the wild inferior.
It is, I suppose, easier for nature not the primitive nature
but that towards which animals develop to make the good
kinds also tame ; 2 but the opposite kinds never, or scarcely
ever, become tame, and it is only under certain conditions of
5 locality and time that sooner 3 or later owing to a general
admixture of circumstances all animals can become tame.
The same thing happens in plants of all kinds ; 4 those
which are garden plants are also found in a wild state, but
it is impossible for all to be cultivated, but some are so
peculiarly conditioned in many respects in their natural soil

10 that, though neglected and left wild, they grow better and
more like cultivated plants than those which are carefully
tilled in other soil.

Why is it that men have large navels, whereas in the 46
other animals they are inconspicuous ? Is it because in the
latter, owing to the long period of gestation, 5 they wither

1 Omitting K<U irXciW.

2 Reading (pva-d 8e ov rf] e dpxrji a\X f(/> rjv, of//ai, paov rroiflv (rn)

3 Reading n prt for dpriov, and placing the comma after Trore instead
of after dpriou.

4 With the whole of this passage cp. de Plantis, 8i9 b 29 ff., and
Theophr. H. P. iii. 2. 2.

6 i. e. the period of gestation is longer in proportion to the time
from conception to the full maturity of the young.

BOOK X. 46 8g6

off and project outwards and swell all up into sores, and so 15
the navel sometimes even becomes mis-shapen ? 1 Now man
comes forth from the womb in an imperfect condition, and
so his navel comes away still full of moisture and blood.
That some animals are perfect and others imperfect at birth
is shown by the fact that some animals can fend for them
selves, but children require looking after.

47 Why is it that some animals copulate only once, others ao
frequently, and some only at certain seasons of the year and
others at no fixed time ? 2 For example, man does so at all
times but wild animals only occasionally, and the wild boar
only does so once but the domesticated pig frequently. Is

it the effect of nourishment and warmth and exercise, since
4 Cypris depends on fullness ? 3 Again, the same species
bears young once in some localities but several times in 25
others ; for instance, the sheep in Magnesia and Libya have
young twice a year. 4 The reason is the prolonged period
of gestation ; for animals, when their desire is satisfied, feel
desire no longer, just as, when they have fed, they no longer
desire food. Also animals when pregnant feel less desire
for sexual intercourse, because the menstrual purgation
does not take place.

48 Why is it that men who have porous teeth are generally 3
short-lived ? 5 Is it a sign that the skull is thick ? For the
brain is weak if it is not well ventilated, and so, being moist,

it quickly decays, just as all other things decay if they are not
in motion and cannot evaporate. For this reason too man
has very thick hair upon the head, and the male is longer-
lived than the female because of the sutures in his skull. 6 35

1 The sense is unsatisfactory, since the latter part of the sentence
seems to contain arguments which imply a prominence of the navel.

2 Cp. Plutarch, Quaest. Nat. 21.

3 A quotation from a lost play of Euripides ; cp. Nauck 2 , p. 647,
no. 895.

4 Cp. H. A. 573 b 30.

5 Cp. xxxiv. i.

8 Which permit more evaporation ; cp. P. A. 65 3 b I ff. and W. Ogle s
note.

8g6 a PROBLEMATA

But we must next consider length of life in relation to other
conditions. 1

Why then are men long-lived who have a cut right across 49
their hands ? 2 Is it because animals whose limbs are badly
articulated are shortest-lived, aquatic animals for example ?
8g6 b And if those which are badly articulated are short-lived,
clearly those that are well articulated must be the opposite.
Now the latter are those in which even those parts are best
articulated which are by nature badly articulated ; and the
inside of the hand is the least well articulated part of the body.

5 Why is it that man alone squints, or at any rate does so 50
more than any other animal ? 3 Is it because he alone, or
more than other animals, is liable to epilepsy 4 in infancy,
when distortion of the vision also always begins ?

Why is man more affected by smoke than other animals ? 5 1
Is it because he is most prone to shed tears, and shedding
tears is one of the effects of smoke ?

10 Why does horse take pleasure in and desire horse, and 52
man take pleasure in man, and generally why do animals
delight in animals which are akin to and like them ? For
every 5 animal is not equally beautiful, and desire is of the
beautiful. The beautiful then ought to be pleasanter ; but
in actual fact it is truer that not every kind of beauty is
pleasant, 6 nor are pleasure and the beautiful equally 7

15 pleasing to all men ; for example, one creature takes greater
pleasure in eating or drinking and another in sexual inter
course. The question why each creature prefers and takes

1 The Latin version of T. G, is no doubt right in rendering here,
an in ceteris quoque idem est cogitandum ; the reference being to the
following problem, which is coupled to the present chapter by the
connecting particle Se, and probably also chapter 64.

2 i.e. the so-called line of life , cp. also xxxiv. 10.

3 Cp. xxxi. 26, 27.

4 eni\>inTov should probably be read here for X^TTTOV, cp. 960* 10 and
note.

5 Reading OTIOVV (Platt) for on nav.

6 Omitting TO <a\ov KOL TO f)8u, which in its original form, TO KaXov nal
j8i , was doubtless a marginal variant of /caXXo? 7781;.

7 Reading naaiv ^6p<nW) 9 ydovf] to complete the sense.

BOOK X. 52 8g6 b

greatest pleasure in sexual intercourse with a creature that
is akin to it is dealt with elsewhere ; l but to add that what
is akin is also most beautiful is not true. 2 But we regard
as beautiful that which is pleasing with a view to sexual
intercourse, because, when we feel desire, we delight in 2
looking upon the object of our desire. And indeed the
same thing happens in other forms of desire ; for example,
when we are thirsty we take greater pleasure in the sight
of something to drink. So that which is beautiful in view
of a certain use of it seems to be most pleasant because we
particularly desire it. (But this is not true of that which is
beautiful in itself, as is proved by the fact that even grown men
appear to us beautiful, when we look at them without 3 any 25
idea of sexual intercourse. Do they then appear beautiful
in such a way as to give our eyes more pleasure than those
who are of an age for sexual intercourse ? There is no
reason why they should not, provided we do not happen to
feel a desire for sexual intercourse.) Thus something to
drink appears to us as particularly good ; for, if we happen
to be thirsty, we shall see it with considerable pleasure.

53 Why is it that in man the front of the body is more thickly
covered with hair than the posterior portion, but in 3
quadrupeds the posterior part is hairiest ? 4 Is it because
all two-footed animals have the front part of the body more
thickly covered ? For the birds resemble man in this
respect. Or is nature always wont to protect the weaker
parts and is every creature weak in some respect ? 5 Now
in all quadrupeds the posterior portions are weaker than 35
the front parts owing to their position ; for they are more
liable to suffer from cold and heat ; but in man the front
portions of the body are weaker and suffer likewise under
these conditions.

1 Viz. in iv. 15 and 26.

2 Restoring the MS. reading oiWri, which is more idiomatic than

OVK f(TTl.

3 To make sense of this passage we must read (o) rrpos rfjv
vwovviav pXtyacri, the negative here being implied by el

TS Tux >in(v in 1. 27. (So too Sylburg and Bussemaker.)

4 The source of this problem is clearly P. A. 658* 16 if.
TOTTOV should perhaps be read for

8g7 a PROBLEM AT A

897* Why is it that man sneezes more than any other animal? 1 54
Is it because he also suffers most from running at the nose ?
The reason of this is that, the heat being situated in the
region of the heart and being naturally disposed to rise
upwards, in the other animals its natural direction is to-
5 wards the shoulders and thence, splitting up owing to
refraction, it travels partly into the neck and head and
partly into the backbone and flanks, because these parts
are all in the same straight line and parallel to the ground
on which the animal stands. Now the heat, 2 as it travels
along, distributes the moisture uniformly to these parts

10 alike ; for the moisture follows the heat. Four-footed
animals therefore do not suffer either much from running
at the nose or sneeze ; for sneezing is due to the rush
either of a mass of breath, when moisture evaporates more
quickly than the body, or of unconcocted moisture (hence
it precedes a cold in the head) ; 3 and these forms of
moisture are not found in the other animals, because the

15 rush of heat is equally distributed between the fore and
hind parts of an animal. Man being naturally, like the
plants, at a right angle to the ground on which he stands,
the result is that a very copious and violent rush of heat
takes place in the direction of the head, and the heat in
its course thither rarefies and heats the ducts in the region
of the head. Now these ducts being in this condition

20 are better able to receive the moisture than those leading
downwards from the heart. When, therefore, a man hap
pens to have become in too moist a condition and to have
been cooled off externally, 4 the result is that the heat
obtaining nourishment and collecting within increases, and
as it does so it is carried to the head and the ducts there.

25 Into these the moisture, which is thin and unconcocted,
follows the heat and fills them up and causes cold in the
head and likewise sneezing. For at the beginning of
a cold the heat, being carried along in advance of the

1 Cp. above, chapter 18, and xxxiii. 10.

2 Omitting TO o-co/xa, which has probably come in as a gloss.

3 Punctuating aTre-rrTUtv (810 npo TO>V Karappav yiyverai), a KrX., and
taking iyp&v as the antecedent of a.

4 Putting the comma after instead of before i^&Qtv.

BOOK X. 54 8g7 a

moisture and inflating the ducts, causes sneezing by the
expulsion of the breath and by the drawing off 1 of those
humours which are light and pungent. Hence it happens 3
that after sneezing from a cold in the head one wipes
away watery matter. These all 2 having been set in motion,
the continuous and solid 3 humours follow closely upon
them and block up the ducts in the region of the head
and nostrils. If they become swollen and distended, they 35
cause pain in the region of the head. That the ducts are
blocked is shown by the fact that no breath can pass out
through them ; 4 so those who suffer from running at
the nose neither sneeze nor can they use their sense of
smell. Sneezing unaccompanied by running at the nose
is due to the same causes, but has some slight and insig
nificant origin ; and so the humours, being collected by 8g7 b
the heat and vaporized by it owing to their small mass,
are precipitated down the nostrils. The noise made by
the breath is due quite as much to the violence of its rush
as to its quantity. For the heat, being carried along in
a direct line to the brain and rushing into it, is refracted 5
into the nostrils, because the ducts there lead out from
the brain. The rush made by the breath in breaking out
into the nostrils, being unnatural, is consequently violent,
and therefore makes loud noises. Amongst the other animals
birds are most liable to running at the nose, because they 10
most resemble man in form ; but they are less liable to
it than man, because they usually hold their heads down,
since they derive their food from the ground.

55 Why are marine animals larger and better nourished
than land animals? Is it because the sun consumes the 15
outer surface of the earth and takes the nourishment out

1 Omitting npo. T. G., who has duchtque humoris tenuis acrisque,
does not render it, and its insertion destroys the sense of the passage,
since the light humours are expelled in sneezing while the solider
humours remain.

2 i. e. the breath and the light humours.

3 Reading ndxos exovra (cp. 87i a 26 and G. A. 739*12) for nddos
f xovTd. The Latin version renders crassi.

4 Reading TO p.r]8i v CKTOS di avroov. TO /i^r eVro? r} Si alnwv neither is
Greek nor does it make sense. The required meaning, however, is
clear. u</>tWdai should probably be read for dfalo-tfai.

8g7 b PROBLEMATA

of it? (For this reason too those animals which are
enclosed in the" earth are better nourished.) Marine
animals then are free from all these disadvantages.

Why is it that the other animals provide themselves 56
20 more often with dry than with moist food, but man
takes more moist than dry nourishment ? l Is it because
man is naturally very hot and therefore requires most
cooling?

Why is it that eunuchs do not become bald ? 2 Is it 57
because they have a large amount of brain-matter ? Now
this is the result of their not having sexual intercourse
25 with women ; 3 for the semen passes from the brain through
the spine. For this reason too bulls which have been
castrated appear to have large horns after castration. For
the same reason also, apparently, women and children are
not bald.

30 Why is it that some animals are able to feed themselves 58
directly after birth, while others cannot ? Are those who
can do so the shorter-lived among those animals which are
capable of memory ? It is for this reason that they always
die sooner.

Why does man produce more moist than dry excrement, 59
35 but horses and asses more dry than moist ? Is it because
the latter animals take more dry food, whereas man takes
more moist than dry nourishment ? 4 For all excrement
comes from food, and a greater amount of food produces
a greater quantity of excrement. 5 Some animals then take
more moist food, others more dry food, because some are
8g8 a naturally dry and others moist, Animals then which are
naturally dry feel more desire for moist food, since they
require it more ; but those which are naturally moist desire
dry food, for they stand more in need of it.

Why is it that birds and men and the courageous animals 60
5 have hard frames ? Is it because high spirit is accompanied

Cp. below, 11. 35, 36.

Cp. H.A. 632*4, G.A. ;84 a 6, and Hippocr. Aph. 6.

G. A. 783 27. 4 Cp. above, 11. 19-22.

Reading wXeiW (Richards)

BOOK X. 60 8g8

by bodily heat, since fear is a process of cooling ? Those
then whose blood is hot are also courageous and high-
spirited ; for the blood gives them sustenance. Plants too
which are watered with warm water become harder.

61 Why is it that quadrupeds of a small size most often
give birth to monstrosities, whereas man and the larger 10
quadrupeds, such as horses and asses, do so less often ? 1

Is it because the small quadrupeds, such as dogs, pigs,
goats, and sheep, have much more abundant progeny than
the larger animals, which either always or usually produce
only one offspring at a time ? Monstrosities come into
being when the semen becomes confused 2 and disturbed 15
either in the emission of the seminal fluid or in the mingling
which takes place in the uterus of the female. So birds
too produce monstrosities ; for they lay twin 3 eggs, and
their monstrosities are born from such eggs in which the
yolk is not separated by the membrane. 4

62 Why is the head in man more hairy than the rest of the 20
body 5 in fact quite disproportionately so while in the
other animals the opposite is the case ? Is it because some
of the other animals send an excessive amount of their
nutritive material into teeth, others into horns, others into
hair ? Those who expend their nourishment on horns
have less thick hair on the head ; for the available material

is used up in the horns. Those whose nourishment goes 25
into teeth have thicker hair on the head than horned
animals (for they have crests or manes), 6 but less thick
than such creatures as 7 birds. For birds have the same
sort of covering as man ; s but, 9 whereas in birds the

1 Cp. G.A. 77o a ioff.

- For Tra\\dTTfLv cp. G. A. 769 b 34, 36. 3 i.e. double-yolked.

1 Cp. H. A. 562 a 24 ff., G.A. ;;o b 16, and A. Platt s notes.

5 Cp. H. A. 498 b 17 ff., P. A. 658^ i.

6 Ac<m includes both crest and mane.

7 Reading, with Richards, otcoi/ opvdwv.

8 The sense here is clear and is that of T. G. s version (his enim
illud etiam, quod homini, genus integendi natura tribuit]^ but the
reading is doubtful. TT\V rwv dvflpanrav seems to require a noun, and
Richards suggests e/cSotrtyj but (l) is e^ovcri r/}i> roov av6p<t>Tr<dv eK.o(riv
good Greek for have the same distribution of hair as men , and (2) is
not this contradicted by what follows ? e^owi yap rfjv avrr^v x a Lrr l v T<$
avOfxJDTTw is perhaps preferable.

9 Reading 6 ( ) CKCIVOIS (so also Richards).

8g8 a PROBLEMATA

covering is distributed all over the body owing- to its
abundance, in man x it breaks out only on the head ; for
man is neither 2 on the one hand devoid of hair, nor on
30 the other hand has he sufficient to cover the whole body.

Why is it that in man alone of the animals the hair 63
turns white ? 3 Is it because most of the animals shed
their coats every year, for instance the horse and the ox,
while others, though they do not do so, are short-lived,
such as sheep and others (in which case the hair does not
35 turn white, because it does not as it were grow old) ?
But man does not change his hair and is long-lived, and
so he grows white owing to age.

Why is it that those in whom the distance from the 64
navel downwards is longer than that from the navel to
8g8 b the chest are short-lived and weak ? Is it because their
stomach is cold owing to its small size, and therefore it
tends to cause excretion rather than concoction ? Now
such persons are unhealthy.

Why is it that some animals come into being not only 65
from the sexual intercourse of animals with one another
5 but also spontaneously, while others, such as man and
the horse, can only be born as the result of sexual inter
course? 4 Is it due, if to no other cause, at any rate to
the fact that the former have a short period of coming
to birth, so that the moment of birth is not protracted
and can take place at the change of the seasons ; 5 but
of the latter class the coming to birth is much protracted,
10 since they are born after a year or ten months, so that they
must necessarily be born from the intercourse of animals
with each other or not at all ? 6

1 Reading TOVTO> (Richards) ; Y a has

2 Reading oi/Ve . . . oyre (Richards).

3 Cp. 89i b i, G.A. 778*25, 780*4, 782*11.

4 Cp. chapter 13.

5 Which sets up the process of decay necessary for spontaneous
generation, cp. 892 a 35, 36 and G.A. 715*25.

6 The text as it stands makes no sense. Since, however, the Latin
version of T. G. renders quapropter vel nullo pacto vel ex coitu
procreentur ilia necesse est, we should certainly read with Bussemaker

(i) ^17) yivfo-Oai fj KT\.

BOOK X. 66 898

66 Why is it that the teeth of Ethiopians are white
indeed whiter than those of other nations, but their nails
are not correspondingly white ? Are their nails dark
because their skin also is black and blacker than that
of others, and the nails grow out of the skin ? But why 15
are their teeth white ? Is it because those things turn
white out of which the sun extracts the moisture without
adding any colour to them, as happens in the case of wax ?
Now the sun colours l the skin, but it does not colour the
teeth, but the moisture is evaporated out of them by the
heat.

67 Why is it that, when the head is removed, some animals 20
die immediately or very soon, while others do not ? Does
death occur less quickly in the bloodless animals, which
require little nourishment, since they do not need food
immediately and the heat in them is not diffused in
moisture, whereas full-blooded animals cannot live with
out food and heat ? The former can live after their heads
are cut off, for they can live longer without breathing.
The reason for this has been stated elsewhere. 2 2 5

1 i.e. tans.

2 This appears to be a direct reference to de Respir, 475** 20 ff.

8 9 8 l

BOOK XI
PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH THE VOICE

WHY is it that of all the senses the hearing is most liable I
to be defective from birth ? Is it because the sense of
hearing and the voice may be held to arise from the same
30 source ? ] Now language, which is a kind of voice, 2 seems
to be very easily destroyed and to be very difficult to
perfect ; this is indicated by the fact that we are dumb
for a long time after our birth, for at first we simply do
not talk at all and then at length begin only to lisp. And
35 because language is easily destroyed, and language (being
a kind of voice) and hearing both have the same source,
hearing is, as it were, per accidens, though not per se^
the most easily destroyed of the senses. 3 Further evidence
8gg a of the fact that the source of language is eminently easy
to destroy may be taken from the other animals ; for no
animal other than man talks, and even he begins to do
so late, as has already been remarked.

Why is it that the deaf always speak through their 2
5 nostrils ? 4 Is it because they are near to being dumb ? 5
Now the dumb make sounds through their nostrils ; for
the breath escapes by that way because their mouth is
closed, and it is closed because they make no use of their
tongue for vocal purposes.

10 Why have all hot-natured men big voices ? Is it because 3
they necessarily have a large amount of cold air 6 in them ?

1 Cp. de Anim. 426*27. 2 Cp. above, 895* 5.

8 Reading e* for ei before o-u/z/Se/rtyKoToy and punctuating as follows :
did re TO T>]V 8id\(K.TOv ev(f)QapTOv dvai, r/)i (ivrrjv Se apx>]v afj,(f>OTfpa)V
fiVm, KCU rrjs $ia\(KTOv (<f)O)vr) yap TLS) KOI rrjS aKorjs, oxrTrep Kol eK
(TvptieQriKOTOs paara TWV al(rdr j are(ov (pdeipfrai KOI ov K.a.6 avrrjv fj aKof).

4 Cp. chapter 4 and xxxiii. 14. 5 Cp. H. A. 536 b 3 fT.

6 T. G. evidently translates from a text which read dep/jLovfortyvxpov,
for he renders perferuidum. If \jsvxpbv is retained the meaning is that
the heat inside the body attracts a quantity of cold air from without ;
there is therefore more air to expel and consequently the voice is big

BOOK XI. 3 899

For their breath, which is hot, attracts the air to itself,
and the more of it there is the more it attracts. Now a big"
voice arises from setting in motion a large quantity of air,
and when the motion is swift, the voice is shrill, and when
it is slow, it is deep.

4 Why do the deaf always speak through their nostrils? 1 15
Is it because the deaf breathe more violently ? For they
are near to being dumb ; the passage therefore of the
nostrils is distended by the breath, and those who are in
this condition speak through the nostrils.

5 Why are sounds more audible at night ? 2 Is it because
there is more quiet then owing to the absence of great 20
heat ? For this reason too there is usually less disturbance ;
for it is the sun which is the source of movement.

6 Why do voices sound shriller at a distance ? 3 For
example, those who try to imitate persons shouting from
a very great distance utter shrill noises, like those of an
echo ; and the sound of an echo is distinctly shriller, 4 and

it is a distant sound, being the result of refraction. Since 25
then in sound the swift is shrill and the slow is deep,
one would have expected voices to seem deeper from a
distance, for all moving bodies move more slowly the
farther they progress from their starting-point, and at last
fall. May not the explanation be that these mimics use
a feeble and thin voice 5 when they imitate a distant 30
sound ? Now a thin voice is not deep, and it is impossible
to emit a small and feeble sound that is deep, but such
a sound is necessarily shrill. Or is it true that not only
do the mimics imitate for this reason, but also the sounds
themselves become shriller ? The reason is that the air
which travels makes the sound ; and just as that which
first sets the air in motion causes the sound, so the air 35

in volume. The reading -^vxpov is borne out by Hippocr. Epid. vi. 4. 19

(V oi? TrAeicrroj/ TO Bep^.6v } /ze-yuAo^coixmiroi* KCI\ yap ^D^pos dr)p TtXeicrTOS.

1 A repetition of chapter 2 in a slightly different form ; cp. also
xxxiii. 14.

2 For a more elaborate treatment of this problem see chapter 33.

3 Cp. chapters 20 and 47, and xix. n.

4 i. e. shriller than the sound which it echoes.

5 Reading p.i/J.ovvTai KOI

8gg a PROBLEMATA

in its turn must do likewise and be partly a motive
power and partly itself set in motion. 1 That is why sound
is continuous, motive power continually succeeding to
motive power, until the force is spent, which results in
falling in the case of bodies, when the air can no longer
impel the missile, while in the case of sound the air can
no longer impel other air. Continuous sound is produced
when air is impelled by air, while the missile continues
its progress as long as there is air to keep a body in

5 motion. In the latter it is always the same body that is
carried along until it drops, in the former it is always
different air. Smaller objects travel more quickly at first,
but do not go far. Therefore voices are shriller and thinner
at a distance ; for that which moves more quickly is shrill
a question which we have already raised. 2 It is for the

10 same reason that children and invalids have shrill voices,
whereas grown men and healthy persons have deep voices. 3
That 4 from near at hand one cannot clearly distinguish
degrees of deepness and shrillness and that altogether the
conditions are not the same as those of heavy bodies
thrown, is due to the fact that the body thrown is one
and preserves its identity throughout ; whereas sound is

15 air impelled by air. Consequently a body falls in one
particular spot, while the voice scatters in every direction,
just as though a body thrown were, in the course of its
flight, to be broken into infinitesimally small pieces, some
particles even returning on their track.

Why are newly plastered houses more resonant ? Is it 7
because their smoothness gives greater facility for refrac
tion ? They are smoother because they are free from cracks
20 and their surface is continuous. One must, however, take
a house which is already dry and not one which is still
quite wet ; for damp clay gives no refraction of sound.
It is for this reason that stucco 5 has a higher degree of

1 Cp. de And. 8oo a i-u. 2 i.e. in 899* 13 and 26.

3 Cp. chapter 16. 4 Reading roO Se (Richards).

5 Apparently a smoother and more expensive material than ordinary
plaster : it was used for coating the inside of reservoirs, cp. de Col.

BOOK XL 7 8g9 b

resonance. Perhaps the absence of disturbance in the air
also contributes something ; for when the air is l massed
together it beats back the air that strikes against it.

8 Why is it that if a large jar or empty earthenware 25
vessels are buried in the ground 2 and lids placed on them,
the buildings in which they are have more resonance,
and the same is true if there is a well or cistern in the
house ? Is it because, since an echo is due to refraction,
the air when enclosed is necessarily massed together, and
so the sound has something dense and smooth upon which

it can strike 3 and from which it can be refracted, these
being the most favourable conditions for an echo ? A well, 30
then, or a cistern causes the contraction and massing
together of air, and jars and earthemvare vessels also have
dense surrounding walls, and so the phenomenon in ques
tion results in both cases. For anything which is hollow
is particularly resonant ; for which reason bronze vessels
are particularly so. That resonance still continues when
the vessels are buried need not surprise us ; for the voice
is carried downwards as much as in any other direction
indeed one conceives of it as being carried in a circle in 35
every direction.

9 But why is it that there is more resonance where vessels

are buried than where they are not ? Is it because covered 900*
vessels receive the air and retain it better ? The result is
that the impact of sound upon them is more violent.

10 Why does cold water poured out of a jug make a shriller
sound than hot water poured from the same vessel ? Is it
because the cold water falls at a greater speed, being heavier, 5
and the greater speed causes the sound to be shriller?

1 It is quite clear from a comparison with the next problem (11. 27-
34 below) that &v must be read for l<bv. The meaning is that a mass
of undisturbed air collected in an enclosed space (in this case in a
room, in the next problem in an earthenware vessel, well, or cistern)
is a good medium for the refraction of sound, and therefore gives an
echo. For another instance of the confusion of <ui/ and i&v see
Qo4 b 16 and note.

2 The custom of burying storage vessels in the floors of houses is
amply borne out by excavations on ancient sites from the earliest
periods onwards.

3 Omitting the comma after avaK\ao-dr)<TTai, and readi

K 2

goo a PROBLEMATA

Heat, on the other hand, makes water lighter by rarefying
it and causing it to rise. 1 We may compare the phenomenon
that torches deal softer blows when they are alight.

10 Why is it that the voice is rougher when one has passed II
a sleepless night ? Is it because the body, owing to absence
of concoction, is moister than usual, especially in its upper
part (which is also the cause of heaviness in the head), and
moisture in the region of the windpipe necessarily makes
the voice rougher ? For roughness is due to unevenness,

J 5 whilst depth is due to congestion ; for the passage of sound
is then slower.

Why does the voice become broken very readily after 12
meals ? 2 Is it because the region in which it is produced
is thoroughly heated by constant impacts, and, becoming
heated, attracts the moisture ? The moisture too is itself
more copious and readier to hand when food is being taken.

20 Why is the sound of weeping shrill, whereas that of 13
laughing is deep ? 3 Is it because those who weep 4 either set
only a little breath in motion, because they are weak, or else
exhale violently, which makes their breath travel quickly ?
Now speed makes for shrillness ; for that which is hurled
from a body which is tense travels quickly. (On the other
hand, a man who is laughing is in a relaxed condition. 5 )
Those who are weak make shrill sounds, for they set only

25 a little air in motion, in some cases merely on the surface. 6
Further, the air emitted by those who are laughing is warm,
while the breath of those who are weeping is colder, just as

1 i. e. by evaporation.

2 Cp. chapter 22. On broken voices cp. de Aud. 8o4 b II ff.

3 Cp. chapters 15 and 50.

4 of fjifv 6\iyov Kivovai 7ri/ef /ua SY dcrdiveinv must refer to the weepers,
not to the laughers, for (i) those who weep are weaker (cp. 904*25,
26), and (2) laughers emit large quantities of air (cp. 11. 25-9 below).
01 8e crtyodpws, 6 Troiei ra^u (pepecrBai TO Trpeu/za must also refer to weep
ing, for breath which is quickly and violently expelled makes a shrill
sound. The whole sentence therefore refers to two different cases of
of K\alovTes. Any other way of taking the passage involves hopeless
confusion in this problem and contradicts chapters 15 and 50. Greater
clearness would be obtained by reading ^ oVi (of Khaiovres) of pev KT\.
Richards (pp. tit., p. 18) suggests o~(f)o8pa>s de for of Se <r(f)odpS)s.

5 Reading SmAeXu/jeVos for SinXeXv/neVco?.

6 Richards (loc. dt.} suggests that of S do-faveis . . . eTmroXf}? is a gloss.

BOOK XI. 13 goo a

pain is a chilling of the region round the breast. Now heat
sets a great mass of air in motion, so that its progress is
slow, 1 whereas cold imparts movement to a little air only. 30
The same thing happens with flutes ; when the player s
breath is hot, 2 the sound produced is much deeper.

14 Why do children :i and the young of other animals have
shriller voices than the full-grown of their species, and that
though shrillness involves a quality of violence ? Is it
because 4 the voice is a movement of the air, and the swifter
the movement the shriller is the sound ? Now a little air 35
can be moved more easily and quickly than a large quantity,
and it is set in motion owing either to its concretion or to its
dissolution by heat. Now since we draw in cold air when we
inhale, the air within us can become concreted by the act of
inhalation; but exhalation, when heat sets air in motion, can
become voice, for it is when we are exhaling that we speak,

not when we are inhaling. And since the young are hotter goo b
than their elders, and their interior passages are narrower,
they may well have less air in them. So, as there is less
in them of that which is moved 5 and more motive power,
namely heat, for both reasons the movement of the air may 5
be quicker ; and, for the reasons already stated, 6 the quicker
the movement the shriller the voice.

15 Why is. the sound of weeping shrill and of laughter
deep ? 7 Is it because those who weep, in uttering their
cries, strain and contract the mouth ? Owing to the tension
the air that is in them is impelled into swift motion, and the 10
contraction of the mouth, through which it passes, makes
its speed still greater. For both these reasons the voice
becomes shrill. On the other hand, those who laugh relax
the tension in doing so and open the mouth. Since then
for this reason they emit the air from the mouth through

a wide aperture and slowly, their voice is naturally deep.

J And therefore deep.

2 Reading <9ep/>uu (Platt) ; all MSS. have 0ep/W.

3 Cp. chapters 16, 34, 62.

4 Reading r; (on) >} $om/, suggested by Ruelle.

5 i.e. air. G 899 a 13, b 8, &c.
7 Cf. chapters 13 and 50.

goo b PROBLEMATA

15 Why is it that persons without generative power, such 16
as boys, women, men grown old, and eunuchs, have shrill
voices, while adult men have deep voices ? 1 Is it because 2
the thin voice has only one dimension, just as the line and
other thin things have one dimension, while thick things
have more than one ? Now it is easier to create and set in

20 motion one thing than several things. Now the breathing
of the persons mentioned above is feeble and sets little air in
motion ; and the air which has only one dimension is very
small in quantity, for it will be thin for the reasons already
stated. And the voice produced from it will be of the same
quality, and a thin voice is shrill. This then is the reason
why persons without generative power have shrill voices ;

25 whereas men who are vigorous set a large quantity of air in
motion with their breath, and the air, being large in quantity,
is likely to move slowly and causes the voice to be deep.
For shrillness of voice is, as we have seen, produced by
a movement at once swift and thin, neither of which
conditions is fulfilled in an adult man.

Why are our voices deeper in the winter ? 3 Is it because 17
30 then the air both inside and outside us is thicker, and, being
such, its movement is slower and the voice therefore deeper ?
Further, we are drowsier in the winter than in the summer
and sleep longer, and we are heavier after sleeping. In the
period then during which we sleep for a longer time than
we are awake (namely, the winter), we may expect to have
35 deeper voices than in the season when the contrary happens.
For during the short interval of wakefulness the condition
set up during sleep persists and causes a tendency to
drowsiness.

Why is the voice deeper as a result of drinking and 18

9oi a vomiting and cold weather ? Is it due to the congestion

of the larynx 4 caused by phlegm, which makes fluid matter

collect in it ? In some people vomiting and drinking, in

others the season and the constriction resulting therefrom,

1 Cf. chapters 14, 34, and 62, and de And. 8c>3 b 18 ff.

2 Reading r) (6Vt) KaBdnep. 3 Cp. chapter 61.

4 Greek (pdfwy, cp. P. A. 664 a 16 and Ogle s note.

BOOK XI. 18

901

make the larynx narrower, so that the passage of breath is 5
slower ; and its slow passage makes the voice deep.

19 Why is it that a deeper voice is more audible close at
hand, but less so at a distance ? Is it because a deeper voice
sets a greater amount of air in motion, but not at a distance ?
So we hear it less well at a distance, because it travels less
far, but better from near at hand, because a greater mass 10
of air strikes upon our sensory organ. A shrill sound is
audible at a distance, because it is thinner ; and that which

is thin has greater longitudinal extension. It might also
be said that the motion which causes it is quicker ; this
would be so, if the breath which sets the air in motion were
at the same time dense and narrow. For, in the first place, 15
air which is small in bulk moves more readily (for the air
which is set in motion by that which is narrow is small in
bulk) ; and, secondly, that which is dense deals more
impacts, and it is these which cause the sound. This can
be illustrated from musical instruments ; for, all other
conditions being the same, it is the thinner strings that give
shriller sounds. 1

20 Why does the voice seem shriller to those standing at 20
a distance, whereas shrillness depends on the rapidity at
which the voice travels, and that which travels moves more
slowly the farther it goes ? 2 Is it because the shrillness of
the voice depends not only on the rapidity with which it
travels but also on the attenuation of sound ? 3 The farther
one is away the more attenuated is the voice when it reaches 25
one, because very little air is set in motion. For the motion
gradually diminishes ; and just as number in diminishing
terminates in the unit, so a body terminates in a single
dimension, and this in a body is tenuity. So it is also with
the voice.

21 Why is it that both those who have taken violent exercise 30
and those who are ill speak shrilly ? 4 Is it because those
who are ill set only a little air in motion, and a little air

1 Cp. de And. 8o3 b 23 ff. 2 Cp. chapters 6 and 47.

3 Reading Aem-of rbv (Richards) for Aen

4 Cp. chapter 40.

goi a PROBLEMATA

travels more quickly than a larger quantity ? Those who
have taken violent exercise, on the other hand, set the air
in vigorous motion, and air which is in vigorous motion
travels more quickly, and in the voice quickness of motion
causes shrillness.

35 Why do those who shout after meals spoil their voices ? l 22
9Ol b Indeed, we can see how those who are training their voices,
such as actors and chorus-men and all such persons, practice
early in the morning and on an empty stomach. Is it
because the spoiling of the voice is simply the spoiling of
5 the region through which the voice passes out ? So too
those who have sore throats have their voices spoilt, not
because the breath which causes the voice is any worse, but
because the windpipe is roughened. This region by its
nature is especially liable to be roughened by violent heat ; 2
and so neither can those who are in a fever sing, nor can

10 those who have been suffering from a violent fever sing
immediately after it leaves them ; for their larynx is
roughened by the heat. The consumption of food naturally
increases and heats the breath, and it is reasonable to
suppose that the breath being in this state makes the wind
pipe sore and rough as it passes through ; and when this

15 happens the voice is naturally spoilt.

Why is it that the voice, which is air that has taken 23
a certain form and is carried along, often loses its form by
dissolution, but an echo, which is caused by such air striking
on something hard, does not become dissolved, but we hear
it distinctly ? 3 Is it because in an echo refraction takes
20 place and not dispersion ? This being so, the whole
continues to exist and there are two parts of it of similar
form ; 4 for refraction takes place at the same angle. So the
voice of the echo is similar to the original voice.

1 This problem clearly continues the topic raised in chapter 12.

2 In 9oo a 12-14 moisture is said to be the cause of roughness, not
heat as here.

3 This problem is repeated, in part verbally, in chapter 51.

4 The two parts into which TO o/W is divided are (i) the voice on
its way to the hard object from which it is refracted, and (2) the voice
after refraction, i. e. the echo.

BOOK XI. 24 901*

24 Why is it that, although the young of all other animals
and infants have shriller voices than the full-grown of their 25
species, 1 calves have deeper voices than full-grown oxen ? 2
Is it because in each species the young resembles the female
of the same kind ? Now among cattle cows have deeper
voices 3 than bulls, and the calves resemble the former
rather than the latter ; but in all other species the males
have deeper voices.

25 Why is it that when the orchestra of a theatre is spread 3
with straw, the chorus makes less sound ? Is it because,
owing to the unevenness of the surface, the voice does not
find the ground smooth when it strikes upon it and is
therefore less uniform, and so is less in bulk, because it is
not continuous ? Similarly light too shines more on smooth
surfaces, because it is not cut off by anything which inter- 35
cepts it.

26 Why does salt make a noise when it is thrown on fire ? 4 902
Is it because salt has a little moisture in it which is evaporated

by the heat and violently bursting forth rends the salt ?
Now anything which is rent makes a noise.

27 Why is it that some children, before they reach the age 5
at which it is time for them to express themselves clearly,
find voice and say something distinctly, and then go on as
before 5 until the usual age for speaking arrives ? Some
regard such incidents as portents; and before now cases
have been reported of children who spoke immediately after
birth. Is it because generally the majority of children at I0
birth c follow the usual course of nature (and so the pheno
menon in question occurs only in a few), and their faculties
keep pace with one another; and so they hear [and find
voice] 7 and understand what they hear and speak and
express themselves clearly all at the same time ? Sometimes,

As has already been stated in 9oo a 32 ff.
Cp. G. A. ;86 b 15, H. A. 545* 19.
Cp. G. A. 786 b 22, H. A. 538* 14.

Cp. chapters 42 and 43. fl i. e. do not speak again.

Retaining the MS. reading yivoptvav.

y KOI $&>i>fl is hardly necessary here, its meaning being more appro
priately expressed by KOI Ae ya following.

go2 a PROBLEMATA

however, these things 1 do not go together, but some

J 5 children understand before the faculty by which they
converse is set free for use, while in others the opposite
happens. The latter, then, would not converse intelligently
(for they merely repeat what they hear) ; but when the time
comes at which they can both speak and understand, they
make a natural use of both functions. But in those in whose

20 souls perception through hearing has been perfected before
the organ 2 by which the voice is first set in motion and
speech is formed, the full power and freeing of the organ of
speech sometimes comes to pass when they already
understand a great deal. This is especially likely to happen
after sleep the reason being that sleep makes the body
and the faculties more sluggish by giving them a rest or,
if not after sleep, after some other similar change has taken

25 place. We can do many things of this sort which require
some short-lived opportunity after which the conditions
are no longer suitable when the organ of speech is in this
state of freedom ; and 3 when there has been obviously
present to their sensation something by which thought was
stirred, in virtue of having heard it the child returns to it
and utters it. Now tunes and phrases often occur to us

30 without our deliberate intention, but if we originally utter
them deliberately, we afterwards speak or sing them without
deliberate intention and cannot get rid of them from our
lips. So too when this happens in children, they speak, 4
and then the faculty involved relapses again into its natural
condition, until the time comes for it to become strong and

35 to be separately constituted.

Why do some objects, chests for example, suddenly make 28
a noise and move, when nothing perceptible sets them in
motion ? Yet that which causes motion is stronger than
that which is moved. The same question arises in connexion

1 Reading raOra (Richards).

Reading with Bussemaker (//) <y.

3 Reading with Richards orav (6 ) . . . J.

4 Reading ovro> Kal rots net idiots ornv o~vp.(3fj Tofro, etVoy, (.Ira TrdXiv
KciT(T T r) KT-A. (cp. above, 11. 7, 8) ; this is supported by the Latin version
of T. G., ita fieri potest ut pueri aliquid dicant, rursusque membrum
. . . redeat ad suain naturani.

BOOK XI. 28 go2 a

with corruption and old age ; for everything which is said
to be * destroyed by time is destroyed by something
imperceptible. Is it similar to dripping water and stones 9 2b
lifted by the growth of plants, namely, that it is not the
final effort but its continuity w r hich raises or moves the
object ? This continuity of effort is imperceptible, but it
results in a movement which is perceptible. So too that
which is contained within perceptible spaces of time 5
moves and can be divided into imperceptible portions,
but these cause motion and corruption by their sum
and their continuity. 1 Now continuity is not in the
present time but in the period of time terminated by the
present.

29 Why does one hear less well when one is yawning ? 2 Is
it because a quantity of breath emitted in the yawn finds its 10
way also into the ears, so that the motion which it sets up
in the neighbourhood of the ears makes a distinct impression
on the perception, especially after sleep ? Now sound is
air or a certain condition of it. The sound then from out
side enters the ear, and that from within comes into collision
with it, and the movement thus caused checks the progress T 5
of the sound from without.

3 Why do children hesitate more in their speech than grown
men ? Is it because, just as, when we are children, we
always have less control over our hands and feet and at
a still earlier age cannot walk at all, so the young cannot
control their tongue ? Now when they are quite small, they 20
cannot speak at all but can only make sounds like the
animals, because they lack control. This is the cause not
only of hesitancy in speech but also of lisping and stammer
ing. Lisping is due to the inability to master a letter not
any letter but some particular one ; stammering is due to

1 i. e. it takes a considerable period for the growth of a tree to move
a stone, and if it is examined at any particular moment the movement
is imperceptible ; but there is a perceptible difference between the
position of the stone at the beginning and at the end of the period,
and this is the effect of the sum of the continuous but imperceptible
movement.

2 Cp. chapter 44 and G. A. 78 i a 30.

go2 b PROBLEMATA

the dropping out of some particular letter or syllable ; l
2 5 hesitancy is due to the inability to join one syllable to
another sufficiently quickly. All three are due to want of
power ; for the tongue is not an efficient servant of the
intelligence. The same thing occurs in those who are
drunken and in the old ; but always to a less extent than in
children.

30 Why is it that the voice trembles in those who are nervous 2 31
or afraid ? 3 Is it because the heart is shaken by the passing
out of the heat ? For this happens in both conditions,
being an effect both of nervousness and of fear. 4 When the
heart is shaken, the impact 5 is not one but many, like that

35 from strings which are not properly stretched. 6

Why is it that those who are nervous have deep voices, 32
but those who are afraid speak shrilly ? 7 Is it because in
those who are afraid the region about the heart is chilled, 8
because the heat passes downwards, and so they set only
a little air in motion ? For the force which sets the air in
motion is derived from heat. In those w r ho are nervous the
go3 a heat travels upwards, as happens in those who are ashamed ;
for it is through shame 10 that nervousness is felt. In those
who are ashamed the heat travels upwards to the face, as is
shown by the fact that they tend to blush. 11 The heat
therefore dissolves and thickens the air with which they
5 speak, and such air can only be propelled slowly ; and in
the voice that which is slow is deep.

1 Cp. de Aud. 8o4 b 26-33.

2 For a definition of aywia see 86g b 6 ; see also note on ib. a 2 for
the difference between aya>via and (poftus.

3 Cp. xxvii. i, 6, and 7.

4 KOI yap . . . (f)opov(jLi>ois has perhaps come into the text as a gloss
upon a/jL(poTfpaKis 8e Trdcr^ovat TOVTO. The doctrine here agrees with
that of ii. 31 as far as the effect of fear is concerned (6 6e <o/3oy

TK>V ai/w

b 7), but the effect of nervousness is there said to be
TO TO 6fp/j.ov avTwv i]6poi<rBai els TOV Trepl TO arfjOns rorrov (ib. 13)*
5 i. e. of the voice upon the air.

G Cp. de Aud. So4 a 38 ff. 7 Cp. chapter 53.

8 Cp. 869 b 7 (quoted in note on 1. 32 above).
In 869 a 4 u-yom a is called av{;r)(ns dep/jLOi .

10 Cp. 905* 8.

11 Contrast 869 a 8, where those who are nervous are said to turn pale.

BOOK XI. 33 9<>3

33 Why are sounds more audible in the night than in the
day ? l Is it for the reason that Anaxagoras 2 gives, namely,
that in the day-time the air, heated by the sun, hisses and
roars, but at night it is still because the heat has ceased, 10
and that when there is no noise hearing is easier ? Or is it
because one hears more easily through a comparative void
than through a plenum ? Now in the day the air is dense,
being full of light and of the sun s rays ; but at night it is rarer,
for then the fire and the rays, which are bodies, have gone 15
out of it. Or is it because in the day-time the various bodies
around us 3 distract our intelligence, and so it is less able to
distinguish 4 what it hears ? Also because we do all that
we have to do preferably in the day rather than at night,
our intelligence 5 too is busy then ; and the perception apart
from intelligence does, if one may say so, 6 only an im
perceptible amount of work as the saying is, l It is the mind 20
which sees, the mind which hears . 7 But at night when
our sight has no work to do and our intelligence is more at
liberty, the channel of hearing, being wider open, is just as
receptive of sounds 8 and better able to report them to the
intelligence, because the latter is neither busy nor distracted 25
by the sight, as it is in the day-time.

34 Why is it that persons without generative power, such
as boys, women, men grown old, and eunuchs, have shrill
voices, while adult men have deeper voices ? 9 Is it because
of the weakness of the organ which sets the air in motion ?
For that which is weak sets only a little in motion ; and 30
a little air travels quickly, and that which travels quickly is
shrill. Or is it because the first passage through which the
air passes is narrow in those who are without generative
power, so that that which expels the air from it has little force,

1 A more elaborate statement of the problem already briefly treated
in chapter 5.

? Diels, Vorsokr?, p. 392.

3 i. e. visible objects. 4 Reading fvKpivrjs (Richards).

5 Reading aun? (sc~. fj Buivota) for avra. ; so also Richards.

6 Kaddnep is inserted to apologize for the play upon the words aia-d^a-is
and avaicrQrjTOV,

7 Epicharmus, fr. 2.

8 Omitting Kadi nrep TT?S fafpas (Platt) as having come from 1. 26.

9 Cp. chapters 14, 16, and 62.

go3 a PROBLEMATA

and the air, being small in volume, travels quickly through
the larynx above, which is wide ? But in the adult and
35 fully developed men this passage is wide (just as also is
that 1 leading to the testicles), and so the quantity of the
air expelled is also greater ; and so passing through more
slowly it makes a deeper sound.

Why is it that those who hesitate in their speech cannot 35

93 b speak in a low voice ? Is it because they are hindered

from using their voice by some impediment ? Since, then,

there is 2 not equal force exerted and similar movement

set up when there is some impediment to the movement

and when there is none, a violent effort is required. Now

the voice is a movement, and those who use more force

5 speak louder ; and so, since they have to force the hindrance

out of the way, those who hesitate in their speech must

necessarily speak louder.

Why do those who hesitate in their speech become worse 36
when they are nervous, but better under the influence of
drunkenness ? Is it because their condition is a state
resembling apoplexy 3 of some interior part of the body
I0 which they cannot move and which by its coldness hinders
their speech ? 4 Wine then, being naturally hot, tends to
get rid of the coldness, but nervousness creates coldness ;
for it is a form of fear, and fear is a chilling condition. 5

Why is it easier to hear sounds from outside in a house 37
than those from inside a house outside it? Is it because
the sound from inside becomes dispersed because it travels
15 over an immense space, so that each component part of
the sound is not sufficiently strong to make itself heard,
or at any rate is less audible ? On the other hand, a voice
from without entering within into a smaller space and
into stagnant air arrives in a close mass, and so being
greater in bulk is more audible.

1 Reading oxTrrep KO.\ (6) eVi (Platt).

2 Reading Kivrjo-ews (otfo-qs-) (Richards).

3 Reading a7ro7rX/j|i a (Bekker).

4 Apoplexy is accompanied by loss of heat, cp. 86o a 34

5 See note on 869 a 2.

BOOK XI. 38 903

38 Why are those who hesitate in their speech melancholic ?
Is it because melancholy is due to their responding too 20
quickly to the imagination ? Now this is characteristic
of those who hesitate in their speech ; for the impulse to
speak outstrips their power to do so, the mind responding
too quickly to that which is presented to it. The same
thing occurs in those who lisp ; J for in them the organs
employed in speech are too slow. 2 This is shown by the
fact that men under the influence of wine become lispers, 25
since then they respond most to the objects presented to
their vision and not so much to the mind.

39 Why do leeks contribute to loudness of the voice (for
we find that this is so even with partridges) ? Is it because,
whereas boiled garlic makes the throat smooth, leeks
contain a certain amount of adhesive matter, and this
cleanses the larynx ?

40 Why is it that in all other creatures the sounds made 30
are shriller when more violence is used, but man speaks
more shrilly when he is weak ? 3 Is it because then he sets
less air in motion, and this passes along quickly, and its
speed makes the sound shrill ?

41 Why can one hear better when one holds one s breath
than when one exhales ? 4 This is why people when 35
hunting tell one another not to breathe. Is it because
the power of perception rises into the upper parts of the
body when the veins are distended ? For it sinks when
one is asleep ; and so those who are sleeping exhale rather
than inhale, and lose the sense of hearing. Or does the
blood rise upwards when one exhales, so that the lower 904*
parts of the body become void, and one can hear better

in a void? Or is it because breathing is a noise, and
when it takes place in the act of exhaling it impedes
the hearing ?

1 Cp. Hippocr. Epid. ii. 5. I voarj^ara 8e e^oim TpavXbs . . . r)

2 Reading

3 Cp. chapter 21. * Cp. chapter 48.

go4 a PROBLEMATA

Why do small quantities of salt make a noise and ex- 4 2
5 plode more quickly, but large quantities more violently ? l
Is it because in the former case the particles burst quickly
because they are small (for the fire does not have far to
penetrate), but in the latter case slowly, since a large mass
is more difficult to burst than a small ? A small quantity
makes a small noise because the impact is small, whereas
10 a large quantity makes a loud noise because the impact
is greater; and sound is an impact. The stronger an
object is, the greater is the explosion if it is struck ; 2 for
it is less yielding.

Why is it that if the same quantity of salt is thrown 43
on to a large fire, it makes less noise than if thrown on
a small fire, or else makes no noise at all ? Is it because
it is burnt up before it can burst ? For it burns because
15 the moisture is used up, 3 and it makes a noise because
it bursts.

Why does one hear less well when one is yawning ? 4 44
Is it because the action of yawning cuts off the breath
internally and the breath so cut off accumulates in the
region of the ears ? This is shown by the fact that there
is a noise in the ears when one yawns. Now the breath
20 thus cut off hinders the hearing. Further one also makes
a noise when one yawns, and this tends to impede the
hearing. Also the organs of hearing must necessarily
become compressed by the distension of the mouth in
yawning.

Why is it that though the voice, since it is a kind of 45
stream, is naturally inclined to travel upwards, yet it is
more audible below from above than above from below ?
25 Is it because the voice is a kind of air mingled with
moisture, and this air being weighed down by the moisture
is carried downwards instead of upwards, since it is the
natural characteristic of moisture to be carried downwards ?
For this reason one hears better when one is below. Or

1 Sc. when thrown upon the fire, as in chapters 26 and 43.

2 Reading nXrjyfj. s Cp> ^a 2> 3.

4 This is the same problem as that of chapter 29, somewhat
differently treated.

BOOK XI. 45 904

is such a result characteristic only of the voice of a living
creature (for it contains moisture) , while the phenomenon
which we are discussing is found also in other sounds ?
Just as the sight then, if it be allowed to fall from a higher 3 o
to a lower object, makes an upward reflexion and vice
versa, 1 so the voice, which has a natural tendency to rise,
coming into collision with the air which bars its progress,
cannot overpower the air, which is greater in mass and
heavier, but the air which is set in motion by the voice, 35
being refracted, is carried in a contrary direction and down
wards, and so, being scattered in a downward direction,
it is more audible below. Somewhat similar is that which
happens in an echo, which is clue to the refraction of the
voice in a contrary direction.

4^ Why are the voices of drunken persons more broken
than those of the sober ? Is it because their voice breaks
easily owing to their state of repletion ? This can be
illustrated by the fact that chorus-men and actors practise
not after a meal but on an empty stomach. 2 Now since
a person in a state of drunkenness is in a condition of 5
greater repletion, his voice is naturally more broken.

47 Why can one hear shriller voices at a greater distance ?
Is it because shrillness in the voice is rapidity, and what
is carried forcibly along moves more rapidly, and what is
carried violently along is carried farther ? 3 10

48 Why can we hear better if we hold the breath ? 4 Is it
because breathing makes a noise ? It is only natural there
fore that we should hear better when the noise is less ; for
the noise is less when we hold the breath.

1 The reference here seems to be to the fact that if one gazes at an
object and then lowers or raises the eyes, a momentary image is
retained of the object first looked at. It is difficult to see the exact
force of this comparison between the voice and the sight ; there is
perhaps some confusion due to the use of the word avaK\a<ris in two
senses, viz. refraction of sound and reflection of light.

2 Cp. 9oi a 35~ b 3.

3 This is a condensed form of the answer given to the same problem
in chapter 6 ; cp. also chapter 20.

B 4 This problem has been more fully treated in chapter 41.

645.25 L

904 b PROBLEMATA

15 Why is it that light cannot penetrate through dense 49
objects, whereas sound can do so, although light is rarer
and travels 1 farther and quicker than sound ? 2 Is it
because light travels in a straight line, and so, if anything
blocks its direct course, it is completely cut off, but sound,
because it is a breath, can also travel in a line that is not

20 direct ? So we can hear those who make sounds from
any direction and not only those who are in a straight line
with our ears.

Why is the sound of laughing deep, whereas that of 5
weeping is shrill ? 3 Is it because a voice which comes
from those who are in a state of tension is shrill, and that
which is shrill is weak ? Now both these characteristics
25 are found rather in those who are weeping ; for they are
in a state of greater tension and they are weaker.

Why is it that the voice, being air which has assumed 5 1
a certain form and is carried along, 4 often loses its form
by dissolution, but an echo, which is formed by such air
striking on something hard, does not become dissolved,
30 but we hear it distinctly ? 5 Is it because in an echo refraction
takes place, not dispersion ? It starts then as a complete
whole and continues to be so. 6 Also, the effect produced
upon it is due to a similar agency ; 7 for it is refracted from
the air in the hollow, not from the hollow itself.

Why is it that when one person makes a sound and 52
a number of persons make the same sound simultaneously,
35 the sound produced is not equal nor does it reach corre
spondingly farther ? 8 Is it because each of them thrusts
forward his own portion of air and they do not all impel
the same air, except to a very small extent ? The result

1 Reading with Bonitz (op. cit., p. 412) 16 for ov ; see also note on
899* 24.

2 This problem is more fully treated in chapter 58.

3 The same question is treated in chapters 13 and 15.

4 Reading eVri <a\ faponevos, dia\verai (W. D. R.); cp. 901^ 17.

5 Cp. chapter 23. 6 Cp. 9oi b 2o.

7 i. e. the air in the hollow upon which the sound strikes and from
which it is refracted, resembles the air in the hollow of the mouth
from which the sound first proceeded.

* Cp. xix. 2. Reading yeyavaviv (cp. 9OI b 3l).

BOOK XI. 52 9 o 4 b

is much the same as when a number ot persons throw
stones but each throws a different stone, or at any rate
most of them do so. Neither in the latter case will any QO5 a
missile travel far (or at any rate not correspondingly
farther), 1 nor in the former case will the voice reach
farther. For this great voice is that of many, not of one ;
so at a short distance it appears correspondingly greater
(just as a number of missiles reaches the same spot), but at
a great distance this is no longer so.

53 Why do those who are nervous have deep voices, but 5
those who are afraid speak shrilly, 2 though a feeling of
shame is a kind of fear ? 3 Or are the two conditions really
very different ? For those who feel shame blush (and
nervousness is a kind of shame), 4 whereas those who are
afraid turn pale. It is clear then that in those who are
afraid the heat fails in the upper part of the body, so that 10
the breath, being weak, sets only a little air in motion ;
and that which is small in bulk travels quickly, and in the
voice quickness is shrillness. But in those who feel shame
the heat in the region of the breast travels upwards, as

is shown by the fact that they blush. Now a strong
force 5 sets a great mass of air in motion, and a great
mass travels slowly, and in the voice slowness is deepness. 15

54 What is the cause of hesitation of speech ? G Is it due
to the chilling of the region in which the sound is pro
duced, and to a condition resembling apoplexy in that part
of the body ? 7 This is why those who hesitate, if warmed
with wine and deriving thence a continuity of speech,
are better able to connect their words together.

1 i. e. in the rare event of two persons helping to hurl the same
stone.

2 The same problem is treated in chapter 32.

3 And dyuvia is a kind of shame, see below. For the difference
between 0o/3oy and dymvla see 86g a i ff., b 7 ff., and note on ib. & 2.

4 It is impossible in English to find separate words to express al8a>s
and alcrxvvrj. alaxvvrj is shame , but mfia>9 is a more complicated
feeling which includes shame , awe , honour , and a ( sense of
wounded honour ; here it seems to denote a combination of shame
and awe or dread .

5 Such as that exerted by heat.

6 The same problem is treated somewhat differently in chapter 60.

7 Cp. 903 b 8-io and note.

L 2

9 os a PROBLEMATA

20 Why is it that of all animals man alone is apt to become 55
hesitating in speech ? l Is it because he alone possesses
the power of uttering- words, while the other animals only
have voices ? Now those who hesitate in their speech use
their voice, but they cannot connect their words together.

Why is the voice shriller in winter and in those who 56
25 are sober, and deeper in summer and in those who are
drunken ? Is it because the quicker a voice is the shriller
it is, and it is quicker when it proceeds from one who is
in a state of tension ? The bodies of those who are sober
are in a more solid condition than those of the drunken,
and bodies are in a more solid condition in winter than in
summer ; for heat and warmth have a dissolvent effect upon

the body.

30 57

Why does the voice come to perfection later in man

than in any other creature capable of sound ? 2 Is it
because there are many variations and kinds of sounds in the
human voice ? For the other animals can express few or
no letters ; 3 and that which is most elaborate and contains
a large number of variations takes a long time to perfect.

r,5 Why is it that the sight cannot pass through hard 58
objects, but the voice can do so ? 4 Is it because the course
of the sight can only take one direction, namely, a straight
line (as is shown by the rays of the sun and the fact that
we can only see what is directly opposite us), whereas the
voice can take many directions, since we can hear from
everywhere ? When therefore the sight is prevented from
making its way through in a straight line, because there

40 is no continuous passage between the eye and the object,
it is impossible to see through the impeding matter. But
go5 b the air and the voice, since they travel everywhere, find
their way everywhere and make themselves audible. On
the other hand, the sight can penetrate through liquids,
but voices cannot be heard through them or hardly at all,
although the liquid is rarer than the earth, because the

1 Cp. x. 40. 2 Cp. 898 b 32.

3 Cp. 899 a i ; H.A. 488 a 32,

4 Cp. chapter 49, and xxv. 9.

BOOK XL 58 905

passages are small and close together and continuous, and 5
so the sight is not prevented from travelling in a straight
line. For the same reason it is possible to see through
glass, although it is dense, but not through a fennel-stalk,
although it contains rarities, because in the former the
pores are continuous, in the latter they are irregular, and
their size is no advantage if they are not straight. 1 The
voice is not audible through water, because the empty 10
air-spaces 2 in it are too small and so cannot admit the
voice or let it pass through, or only with difficulty ; for the
voice is a kind of air. For that which is rarer is not
necessarily more penetrable, unless at the same time the
passages are adapted to that which is passing through. So
also that which is rarer is not necessarily more compressible,
unless its passages are of such a kind as to admit the 15
passage of other bodies. But, it may be urged, that which
is rare is soft and compressible. True, but in some things
compression is impossible owing to the smallness of the
passages in glass, for example ; for its passages cannot be
contracted, although it may be rarer than a fennel-stalk,
for the reason already mentioned. So too with water 20
and the like. This then is clear, that, although the rare
and the soft are either identical or else of a very similar
nature, yet it does not follow that the rarer a thing is the
more it admits of contraction. The reason in all these
cases is the same.

59 Why is it that the sound produced becomes less if some
of those who produce it are withdrawn, 3 but its character
is unchanged ? Is it because their voice had formed part 25
of a general mingling of sound, and that which is mingled
is not mingled in one part and not in another, but is
mingled throughout ? 4 So when some of those who make

1 Reading with Bonitz (pp. cit., p. 412) Sioparat, on rrjs fieV 01 rropoi
KaraXA^Aot, rov de TrapaXAarrorres 1 , ovQcv $ 6<pe\os etVat KT\.

2 TO. ftuiKwa are the same as the rropoi of the rest of the passage.

3 This must be the meaning of eai/joL>jueVo>f, though it is very
inadequately expressed in the text. The source of this problem, like
that of chapter 52, is evidently a series of questions connected with
chorus singing ; and in its original setting the context doubtless made
its meaning clearer.

4 Cp. M XG. 977 a * " 7rflJ/ aTTflVTi /nepos fiefJiiKTai o/Wcos KUI TO oAof.

go5 b PROBLEMATA

the sound are withdrawn, the volume of sound comes
forth in the same way as before from the various voices, and
must therefore, though smaller, necessarily retain the same
characteristics.

What is the cause of hesitancy in speech ? l Are those 60
who hesitate in too great a hurry because of the heat that

30 is in them, and so they stumble and stop ? If so, they
resemble those who are angry, for they too become full
of panting, with the result that a large quantity of breath
comes together. Or do they pant owing to the boiling
of the heat, because it is abundant and cannot come forth
before the proper moment 2 of exhalation ? Or is the
right explanation the exact contrary, namely, that it is
the chilling rather than the heating of the region in which

35 the sound is produced a state resembling apoplexy in
that part of the body ? That is why those who hesitate,
when warmed with wine and deriving thence a continuity
of speech, are better able to connect their words together/ 5

Why are voices deeper in the winter ? 4 Is it because 61
then the air is thicker and as a consequence its movement
is slower, and therefore the voice is deeper ? Or is it
40 because the air passes more slowly through narrow pas-
go6 a sages, and the region round the larynx is closed by the cold
and by the phlegm which flows into it ?

Why is it that boys, women, eunuchs, and old men have 62
shrill voices ? 5 Is it because the movement of air which
creates a shriller sound is quicker ? Now it is more
5 difficult to move a greater amount of the same thing, 6
and so those who are in the prime of life draw in
the air in greater quantities, and therefore this air, since
it travels more slowly, makes the voice deeper. In boys
and eunuchs the contrary occurs, because they contain less

1 This problem is the same as that of chapter 54, but some alterna
tive solutions are suggested here.

2 It appears necessary to read rbv . . . naipov.

3 This last explanation is a verbal repetition of 9c>5 a 16-19.

4 Cp. chapter 17.

5 Cp. chapters 4, 16, and 34.

6 Reading n\flov ov (W. D. R.) for

BOOK XI. 62 906*

air. Old men s voices tremble l because they cannot control
them, just as, when invalids and children take hold ofio
a long stick by one end, the other end shakes, because they
have no control over it ; this too is the cause of trembling
in old men, namely lack of control. We must suppose also
that trembling of the voice in those who are nervous or
afraid or chilled is due to the same cause. For in one
whose voice is in this state, since most of the heat collects 15
within as a result of the above conditions, 2 the rest, 3 which
is small in quantity, cannot control the voice ; consequently
it shakes and trembles. This is the reason why artists
who belong to the class of those who are conscious of
nervousness speak in a low voice at first, until they settle
down to their work ; for by keeping the voice low they 2 o
can control it.

1 There is an anacoluthon in this sentence, the infinitive
being picked up by 8ia TOITO KCU ol 7rpeo-/3trai

2 The text is disturbed. In the above TOUWT^V, (TO{)

TOIOVTWV has been translated. The Latin version of T. G. has : cum
enfm, qiii -vocem it a emit tit, eius calor pulsus ab affe dibits illis intro
se coliigat maxima a parte, &c. The insertion of calor here is quite
in accordance with the doctrine that it is heat which sets the voice in
motion (cp. 9O2 b 37-9) ; also the theory of irfpiaTao-is or ai/riTrepi o-rao-ts-
TO? dfpfj.ov is exceedingly common in the Problems, see note on 876^ 32.

3 Reading <ro) XOITTOV (W. D. R.).

BOOK XII

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH THINGS OF
PLEASANT ODOUR

WHY is it that perfumes produced by burning affect the I
senses less at a short distance ? l Is it because the effluvium
is pleasanter when mingled with the air in a weak form,
25 as happens in medicinal myrrh? Or can the contrary
of this be the explanation, namely, that the fire destroys
the odour in the immediate neighbourhood of the flames ?
For the odour is produced when the perfume evaporates ;
wherefore near the embers the effluvium has no odour,
but it appears purer and thinner the farther away it is.

30 Why is it that the odours of burning perfumes and of 2
flowers are less sweet-scented at a close distance ? 2 Is
it because particles of earth 3 are given off with the odour,
and these, owing to their weight, fall more quickly to the
ground, and therefore the odour is pure at a greater
distance ? Or is the effluvium not at its strongest either
quite near to its source or very far from it? For close

35 at hand it has not yet gained strength, while at a distance

it has become dissipated. It is said that trees become 3

sweet-scented upon which the rainbow has fallen. Is this

true or false ? 4 And if it is true, what can be the cause of

go6 b the phenomenon ? 5 That it does not happen always and as

1 The same problem or kindred questions are treated in chapters 2,
4, and 9. The source of these problems is clearly Theophrastus, de
Cans. Plant, vi. 17. I ; fr. 3 (de Odoribus\ 12, 13.

2 Cp. chapters I, 4, and 9.

3 For the earthy element in plants, cp. de Plant. 822 a 12, b 2, &c.

4 Aeyerat yap, as Prantl (pp. tit., p. 350) has shown, does not begin
a new problem. Chapter 3 is a digression which raises a side issue,
as in the source from which this problem is taken (Theophrastus, de
Caus. Plant, vi. 17. 7). In several MSS. Ae yerai -yap . . . Karaa-K^y follows
TO o-vpfiaivov (1. 38), which shows that a difficulty was felt in beginning
a new problem with a statement such as A eye-rut yap, instead of a
question; this alteration, however, would give a form of problem
which cannot be paralleled elsewhere.

6 Reading alrlav (a?) iirj (so also Richards).

BOOK XII. 3 go6 l

a universal rule is obvious ; for rainbows often occur without
any visible effect on the trees. When it does happen (for it
does occur sometimes and this has given rise to the saying),
the effect is not produced on every kind of wood. The cause
can only be attributed to the rainbow per accidens, espe- 5
cially if the rainbow does not really occur in nature but
is an effect produced on the eye by refraction. 1 Now the
phenomenon, as we said, does not occur whatever the
condition of the wood ; for shepherds say that sweet odour
is noticeable after the rains which accompany the rainbow
not in green or in dry trees but in burnt wood, and in 10 *
particular where briers and brambles grow and trees which
have sweet-scented flowers. The reason of the sweet scent
is the same as in the soil ; for where the soil is hot and
burnt through and through, anything which grows from it
is at first sweet-scented. For things which contain but
little moisture, if they are burnt at all, become sweet-
scented ; for the heat concocts this moisture. (So, all the 15
world over, those parts towards the sun have a sweeter
odour than those towards the north ; and of the former
those towards the east have a sweeter odour than those
towards the south, for the districts of Syria and Arabia
have more soil, but Libya is sandy and free from moisture.)
For there must not be a large amount of moisture for 20
much moisture is difficult of concoction nor must there
be a complete absence of it, or else there will be no
evaporization. These conditions are fulfilled in newly
burnt wood and wood which naturally has a sweet odour
in itself. This is proved to be true by the flowers, for
it is through them that the wood emits its scent. The
theory that sweet odour is engendered in any trees upon
which the rainbow rests is due to the fact that this cannot 25
happen without the presence of water ; for it is when the
wood has been wetted and has then concocted the moisture
by the heat which is in it, that it gives out the vapour
which is being engendered in it. But 2 there must not be
a large amount of water ; for too much water drenches the

1 Cp. Meteor, 372* 18, 32 ; de Mundo, 395*29 ff.

2 Reading oifie for otfre, as suggested by Bekker.

go6 b PROBLEMATA

tree and extinguishes the heat previously caused by the
30 burning-. Now the rains which follow the rainbow, so far
from being heavy, may almost be called slight. Also if
there is a number of rainbows, the rain is not heavy, but
it falls little and often. It is therefore natural under these
circumstances that men notice nothing unusual except
the rainbow and attribute to it the cause of the sweet
odour.

35 Why is it that flowers and burnt perfumes smell sweeter 4
at a distance, 1 whereas close at hand they have rather the
smell either of vegetation or of smoke ? Is it because
scent is a form of heat and sweet-scented things are hot ?
907* Now heat is light, and so, the further the perfumes pene
trate, the more does their scent become purified from other
concomitant odours produced by their leaves and by smoke,
which is a watery steam ; at a short distance, on the other
hand, the mingled odours 2 are simultaneously perceptible
in the plants in which they are present.

5 Why do things always emit a stronger odour when they 5
are in motion ? ;! Is it because they fill a larger space of
air than when they are at rest ? The result is that the
odour is thus transmitted more quickly to our perception.

Why is it that we perceive odours less in the winter, 6
especially in frosty weather ? Is it because the air is more
10 free from motion when it is cold ? The motion therefore
set up by the body which produces the odour cannot have
such a far-reaching effect owing to the difficulty of im
parting motion to the effluvium and to the air in which
it is present.

Why do perfumes have a more pungent odour when 7
they are burnt on ashes than on the fire ? 4 And why is
their odour stronger and more persistent when they are
I5 burnt on ashes? Is it because their odour is less tho
roughly concocted on ashes, and therefore greater in bulk ?

1 Cp. chapters I, 2, and 9.

2 i. e. the odour of the leaves and of the smoke as well as the
scent.

3 Cp. xiii. 12. 4 Cp. below, chapter n.

BOOK XII. 7 9 o7 a

Now fire by quickly concocting their natural force alters
their odour ; for concoction involves alteration in that
which is concocted.

8 Why do those roses in which the centres are rough 20
smell sweeter than those in which they are smooth ? Is

it because those roses smell sweetest which partake most
of the natural characteristics of the rose ? Now the rose
is naturally spiky , and so it smells sweeter when its
characteristics are more a centuated.

9 Why are the odours both of burnt perfumes and of
flowers less pleasant at a short distance ? l Is it because 25
at a short distance the earthy element is transmitted with
the scent, and so mixing with it lessens its strength, whereas
the oclour travels to a distance ? It is for this reason too
that flowers when rubbed lose their scent. 2

10 Are scents smoke [or air] 3 or vapour ? For it makes

a difference, in that the former is produced by fire, the so
latter without it. And is something transmitted from the
sense to the objects producing the scent or vice versa,
causing a continuous motion in the adjoining air ? Also,
if any effluvium is given off by these objects, one would
expect them to become less ; yet we see that those things
which have the strongest scent last the longest.

11 Why have perfumes a more pungent odour when they 35
are burnt on ashes than on fire ? 4 Is it because their
odour is less thoroughly concocted on ashes and is there
fore greater in bulk ? Consequently a large quantity of
the earthy element is vaporized in the process and becomes
smoke; but the fire burns up the earthy element before

it can escape, and so the odour is purer and reaches the
senses untainted by the smoke. This is also the reason QO7 b
why flowers when rubbed smell less sweet ; for the rubbing

1 Cp. chapters i, 2, and 4.

2 Because rubbing brings out the earthy element, which prevails
over^the scent, cp. 9o; b 1-3, 33-4.

3 jj arjp, which has probably crept into the text owing to the mention
of di^p in 1. 33, should be omitted, since only two alternatives are
offered in the next sentence.

4 Cp. chapter 7.

go7 b PROBLEM AT A

imparts motion to the earthy element and the slow heat 1
does not destroy it.

Why is it that sweet-smelling seeds and plants promote 12
the flow of urine ? 2 Is it because they contain heat and
5 are easily concocted, 3 and such things have this effect ?
For the heat which is in them causes quick digestion 4 and
their odour has no corporeal existence ; for evil-smelling
plants, such as garlic, by reason of their heat promote
the flow of urine, but their wasting effect is a still more
marked characteristic. But sweet-smelling seeds contain
heat, because odour is in general engendered by heat;
10 while evil-smelling things are unconcocted. Now anything
which is to promote the flow of urine must be not only
hot but also easily concocted, in order that it may accom
pany the liquids in their downward course and effect their
digestion.

Why is it that wines mixed with water have a less strong 13
odour 5 than when they are unmixed ? Is it because wine
1 5 mixed with water is weaker than unmixed wine? Now
the weaker is more easily changed by any force acting
upon it than the stronger. 1 So wine mixed in the water
is more easily affected than unmixed wine. Now it is
characteristic of that which is easily affected 7 to yield 8
to something else or to receive something which does not
belong to it ; unmixed wine, therefore, has a strong odour,
but wine mixed with water is odourless.

1 i. e. that produced by friction.

2 This problem is partly identical with i. 48 and is repeated in xx. 16.

3 Reading ei/VeTmz, cp. 865 a 20, 924** 19: the reading Xf/rru is
probably due to Aorrui/ei in the next line.

4 See note on 865*21.

5 Reading TJTTOV for darrov.

c Reading (0arToi>) eioraTai in order to have a comparative to
govern the genitive rou iV^uporepoi;.

7 Reading ein-frfo-repov. 8 Reading imel^ai (W. D. R.).

BOOK XIII

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH THINGS OF
UNPLEASANT ODOUR

1 WHY is it that urine acquires a more unpleasant odour
the longer it remains in the body, whereas ordure becomes
less unpleasant to the smell ? Is it because the latter
becomes drier the longer it remains in the body (and what

is dry is less liable to putrefaction), but urine thickens, and 25
the fresher it is the more like it is to the original liquid
drunk ?

2 Why is it that things of unpleasant odour do not seem
to have an odour to those who have eaten them ? Is it
because, owing to the fact that the scent penetrates to the
mouth through the palate, the sense of smell soon becomes
satiated and so it no longer perceives the odour inside the 30
mouth to the same extent for at first every one perceives
the odour, but, when they are in actual contact with it,
they no longer do so, as though it had become part of
themselves and the similar odour from without is over
powered by the odour within ?

3 Why have flowers an unpleasant odour when they are
rubbed ? Is it because the earthy element, which is in the
flower, mingles with the odour ? l

4 Why is it that no living creature is pleasant to the smell 35
except the panther 2 which is pleasing even to the animals,
for they are said to find pleasure in its odour and when
they decay they are unpleasant to the smell, but many
plants when they decay and wither become still more
pleasant to the smell ? Is it because the cause of evil odour

is an unconcocted condition of excretion ? For this reason go8 J
the perspiration of some people is sometimes unpleasant,

1 Cp. 9o; a 27, b i ff.

2 Cp. Theophrastus, de Caus. Plant, vi. 5. 2.

go8 a PROBLEMATA

particularly in those whose perspiration is not usually un
pleasant, as the result of disease. 1 Also the exhalations and
eructations of those who are in an unconcocted state are
unpleasant. The same cause must be ascribed for evil
odour in the flesh and in that which is analogous to it (by
5 which I mean that which in other animals corresponds to
flesh) ; for here too there is sometimes unconcocted excre
tion. This then when it putrefies is a cause of evil odour
in living creatures and in decaying bodies. For this reason
too the fat and the bony parts and the hair have no evil
odour, because the fat and bones are already concocted,

10 while the hair contains no moisture. Now plants contain
no excretion. 2 Or is there excretion in them also, but,
because plants are naturally dry and hot, is the moisture
in them more easily concocted and not of a thick con
sistency ? This can be illustrated from the soil, which is
pleasant to the smell in hot regions, such as Syria and
Arabia, and from the fact that the plants which come from

15 there are sweet-smelling, because they are dry and hot;
and such plants are not liable to decay. But animals are
not dry and hot, 3 and so their excretions are unconcocted
and malodorous, and likewise their 4 exhalations, and when
they decay the moisture putrefies. This does not happen
in plants, because they contain no excretions.

20 Why are things of unpleasant odour more unpleasant 5
when they are hot than when they are cool ? Is it because
odour is a vapour and an effluvium ? A vapour, then, and
an effluvium is caused by heat ; for a movement takes place,
and heat is the source of the movement. Cold, on the
contrary, is a source of stagnation and contraction and

25 downward movement ; 5 but heat and all odours have an
upward tendency, because they are in the air, and the
organ which perceives them is above and not below ; for
odour penetrates to the brain and so causes perception.

1 The Teubner text misprints rotoO rot eWcoi/ for TOIOVTOL CK ro>i/.

2 This is the Aristotelian view, cp. P. A. 650* 22, de Plantis, 8i7 b 19.

3 Toiavrd <TTL Ka\ dfpfjid appears to be a mixture of two readings,

(l) fyipdecTTi Kn\ dfpm i, (2) Toiavrd ( = r)pa KOI deppd) C OTI.

4 Reading with Richards KOI (at) Sin$u<rei?.

5 Reading (popovv, neuter of the participle of cpopea.

BOOK XIII. 6 9 o8 a

6 Why, if one eats garlic, does the urine smell of it,
whereas this does not happen when other things are eaten
which have a strong odour ? Is it because, as some of
the followers of Heraclitus say, 1 vaporization takes place 30
in the body just as in the universe, and then, when the
process of cooling succeeds, moisture is formed in the
universe and urine in the body, so the vaporization from
the food, when it is formed by intermixture, causes the
odour (for it is odour after it has undergone change) ? 2 If
so, ought not all the foods too which have a strong odour 35
to produce this effect, which we know they do not ? Further
more, concretions from vapour do not resume their original
form which would result in wine, for example, being
produced from the vapour of wine instead of water, as
actually happens and so this part of their theory is also
untrue. The truth is that garlic, alone of foods which Qo8 b
have an odour which is strong and also promotes the flow

of urine, has the quality of inflating the lower part of the
belly; all other such foods (radishes, for example) engender ;i
breath higher up or else do not promote the flow of urine.
But garlic 4 has these three qualities : it promotes the flow
of urine, it engenders breath, and it does so in the lower 5
part of the body. The region round the privy parts and
the bladder feels the effect of such foods owing to its
nearness 5 and because it is liable to admit breath; that
this is so is shown by the distension of the privy parts.
It is clear therefore that the excretion of garlic is more
liable than that of any other such food to reach the bladder
with the breath, and this excretion mingling with the urine 10
imparts its odour to it.

7 Why is it that the mouths of those who have eaten
nothing, but are fasting, have a stronger odour, the smell
of fasting , as it is called, but when they eat the odour

1 For other applications of the Heraclitean doctrine of
cp. below 934 b 33 ff., de Ammo,, 405* 25, 26.

2 Reading /uera/SaXi;. 3 Omitting KI before ra

1 /curco cannot stand here ; it is in its proper place in the next line.
The Latin version of T. G. has allium i>ero tria niniirum haec facit ,
and we must read rourw (= o-Kopodw) which the context demands.

5 i. e. to the lower part of the stomach.

go8 b PROBLEMATA

ceases, when one would expect it to increase ? Is it because,
as the stomach becomes empty, the air becomes hotter from
the absence of motion and causes the breath and the excre-
15 tions of phlegm to putrefy ? That the air becomes hotter
is proved by the fact that fasting also induces an increase
of thirst. When food is taken, the odour ceases because
it is less than that of the food ; for the heat in the food
overcomes the internal heat, so that it cannot undergo any
process of change. 1

ao Why has the armpit a more unpleasant odour than any 8
other part of the body ? Is it because it is least exposed
to the air ? 2 Such parts have a particularly unpleasant
odour because putrefaction takes place in them owing to
the stagnation of fat. Or is it because the armpit is not
moved and exercised ?

Why is it that those who have a rank odour are still 9
more unpleasant when they anoint themselves with un-
25 guents ? Is it because this kind of thing happens in many
instances ; for example, if something acid and something
sweet are mixed, the resulting whole is sweeter? Now
any one who perspires has an unpleasant odour, and
unguents are productive of heat and therefore induce per
spiration.

Why is it that the odour of the breath of those who 10
30 are bent and deformed is more unpleasant and oppressive ? 3
Is it because the region round the lungs is contracted and
bent out of an upright position, so that it does not give
a free passage to the air, but the moisture and the breath,
which tends to be enclosed within, putrefies ?

Why is it that most unguents are unpleasant when they n

mingle with perspiration, but others have a sweeter or at

35 any rate not a more unpleasant odour ? Do those which

change as a result of movement or friction deteriorate in

odour, whereas those which do not are improved ? There

1 i. e. produce putrefaction which engenders the smell of fasting .

2 Cp. 867*4-7-

3 This is quoted by Apollonius, de Mirab. 37, as from the Physical
Problems of Aristotle.

BOOK XIII. ii 908*

are some such perfumes, just as there are some flowers
from which scents are made, which deteriorate when rubbed 99 ?
or heated or dried, white violets, for example ; but others
remain the same, for instance roses. The unguents too
made from flowers of the former class change, while those
made from the latter do not ; and so rose-perfume is least
liable to change. Also unguents have a more unpleasant
odour on those whose perspiration is malodorous, through 5
mingling with their opposite, just as honey when mixed
with salt becomes not sweeter but less sweet.

12 Why do objects always produce a stronger odour when
they are in motion ? l Is it because they fill up the air ?
The result is that the odour is thus transmitted more ro
quickly to our perception.

1 This chapter is an almost verbal repetition of xii. 5.

M

BOOK XIV

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH THE EFFECT
OF LOCALITY ON TEMPERAMENT

WHY are those who live under conditions of excessive I
cold or heat brutish in character and aspect ? Is the cause
15 the same in both cases ? For the best mixture of conditions
benefits the mind as well as the body, but excesses of all
kinds cause disturbance, and, as they distort the body, so
do they pervert the mental temperament.

Why is it that in Pontus corn, if exposed to the cold, 2
keeps intact for many years ? l Is it because the extraneous
20 moisture is evaporated together with the heat, as happens
in grapes ? For some things are evaporated by the cold
and others with the heat.

Why do burning fevers occur more frequently in the 3
coldest season ? Is it because the cold imprisons the heat 2
within ? In the summer the contrary occurs, the interior of
25 the body being cooler than the exterior. Burning fever
is the inflammation in which, 3 the exterior of the body
being cold, the interior is in a condition of excessive heat.

Why are the Ethiopians and the Egyptians bandy- 4
legged ? Is it because the bodies of living creatures
become distorted by heat, like logs of wood when they
become dry ? The condition of their hair too supports this
30 theory ; for it is curlier than that of other nations, and
curliness is as it were crookedness of the hair.

1 Cp. Theophr. de Cans. Plant, iv. 16. 2.

2 For at-TiTrepiWttcrir rou 06,0/Moi) see 867 b 32 and note.

3 The text, as it stands, does not give any good sense, but the
meaning is quite clear from a comparison with 862 b 3iff., which
expressly states that burning fever comes from within and is due to
the collection of heat inside the body. The simplest emendation is
to read with Sylburg Truperos (eV > TWV rX.

BOOK XIV. 5 gog a

5 Why is it that in damp regions copulation is more likely
to lead to the birth of female offspring- ? 1 Is it because a
large amount of moisture thickens more slowly, and in
damp regions the semen is moister owing to the presence
of more moisture in the temperament ?

6 Why is it that in marshy districts sores on the head are 35
quickly cured, but those on the legs only with difficulty ? 2
Is it because the moisture, since it contains an earthy
element, is heavy, and heavy tilings are carried down
wards ? Thus the upper parts of the body are easily
concocted, because the impurities are carried downwards ;
but the lower parts become full of abundant excretion
which easily putrefies. 40

7 Why is it that those who live in airy regions grow old gog b
slowly, but those who inhabit hollow and marshy districts

age quickly ? Is it because old age is a process of putre
faction, and that which is at rest putrefies, but that which
is in motion is either quite free from, or at any rate
less liable to, putrefaction, as we see in water ? In lofty
regions, therefore, owing to the free access of the breezes, 5
the air is in motion, but in hollow districts it stagnates.
Furthermore, in the former, owing to its movement, the air
is always pure and constantly renewed, but in marshy
districts it is stagnant.

8 Why are the inhabitants of warm regions cowardly, and
those who dwell in cold districts courageous ? 3 Is it because
there is a natural tendency which counteracts the effects of ro
locality and season, since if both had the same effect man
kind would inevitably be soon destroyed by heat or cold ? 4
Now those who are hot by nature are courageous, and
those who are cold are cowardly. But the effect of hot
regions upon those who dwell in them is that they are
cooled, while cold regions engender a natural state of heat
in their inhabitants. Both races are large of stature those 15

1 Cp. G. A. 766 1 34, where the same view is stated.

2 The same problem occurs in i. 18. 3 Cp. chapter 16.

1 For this use of aaietv for the effects of both extreme heat and
extreme cold cp. Meteor. 382 b 8 Kaieiv Ae yerat ... TO

M 2

go9 b PROBLEMATA

who live in cold regions because of the innate heat in them,
and those who inhabit hot districts owing to the heat in
which they live ; for increase of stature occurs both in those
who are hot and as a result of heat, whereas cold has a con
tracting effect. Since then those who live in cold districts
20 have a powerful principle of growth in themselves, and
those who live in hot regions encounter no external cold
which prevents their growth, both naturally admit of con
siderable increase in stature. But this is less true of those
who live in our latitudes, because the principle of growth
in them is less strong, and those who live in cold regions
feel the contracting effect of cold.

25 Why are those who live in hot regions longer-lived ? Is 9
it because their natural condition is drier, and that which is
drier is less liable to putrefaction and more lasting, and
death is as it were a kind of putrefaction ? Or is it because
death is due to the chilling of the interior heat, 1 and every-

30 thing is chilled by a surrounding medium which is colder
than itself? Now in warm regions the surrounding air is
hot, but in cold regions it is cold and so more quickly and
effectively destroys the interior heat of the body.

Why are those who live in hot regions longer-lived ? lo
35 Is it because they preserve their heat and moisture better ?
For death is the corruption of these. 2

Why is it that we become drowsier in marshy districts ? n
Is it because there we are more cooled, and cooling, being
4 o a kind of rest, 3 induces sleep, and sleep occurs during rest ?

gio a Why is it that those who live on board ship, though 12
they spend their time on the water, have a healthier colour
than those who live in marshes ? Is the weather and the
free access of the breezes the cause ? Now water makes
men pale when it putrefies, a process which is due to the
absence of movement; that is why those who live in
marshy regions are rather pale.

1 Cp. de luv. et Sen. 469* 18 ; de Vit. et -Mori. 478*32.
- A condensed form of the previous chapter.
3 i.e. cold is 570-^10, just as heat is

BOOK XIV. 13 gio s

13 Why is suffocating- heat very frequently experienced in 5
wintry regions, much more so than in warm districts ? l Is
it because of the moisture in the air ? For as a result of
the same heat applied to it water becomes hotter than air,
and therefore damper air 2 becomes hotter than dry air. 3
Or perhaps the air is not really hotter 4 in these regions,
but only seems so by contrast with the general coolness, as 10
the sun emerging from a cloud seems hotter in contrast with
its effect when it is behind a cloud.

14 Why do those who live in southerly climes tend to have
black eyes ? Is blueness of the eyes due to excess of
internal heat, whereas blackness is due to its absence, as
Empedocles affirms ? Just, therefore, as those who dwell 15
in the north have blue eyes, because the internal heat is
prevented from escaping owing to the external cold ; so in
those who dwell in southerly climes the moisture cannot
escape owing to the surrounding heat, but the heat escapes
because there is nothing to bar its exit, and the moisture 2 o
left behind causes blackness; for when light departs that
which is left behind is dark. Or does the pigmentation of
the eye assimilate itself to the colour of the rest of the
body ? If so, the eyes of those who live towards the north
are blue, because they are themselves white (for blue is
akin to white) ; and those who dwell in the south being 25
black, their eyes also are black.

15 Why are those who live in warm regions wiser than
those who dwell in cold districts?" Is it for the same
reason as that for which the old are wiser than the young ?
For those who live in cold regions are much hotter, because
their nature recoils owing to the coldness of the region in
which they live, so that they are very like the drunken and
are not of an inquisitive turn of mind, but are courageous 6 30
and sanguine ; but those who live in hot regions are sober
because they are cool. Now everywhere those who feel

; Cp. 9 38 a 37 ff.

2 Reading 6 d?}p (6) vyporfpo? (W. D. R.).

3 Reading ^ypov for Qeppov (W. D. R.).

4 Reading #ep/udrfpo? for ^pdrepoy (W. D. R.) ; T. G. renders calidior.

5 Cp. Pol. I32; b 23 ff. G Cp. 9<D9 b 10 ff. ; 9io a 37 ff.

gio a PROBLEMATA

fear make more attempt to inquire into thing s than do the
self-confident, and therefore they discover more. Or is it
because the race of those who live in warm regions is more
ancient, the inhabitants of the cold regions having perished
35 in the Flood, 1 so that the latter stand in the same relation
to the former as do the young to the old ?

Why are the inhabitants of warm regions cowardly, and 16
those who dwell in cold regions courageous ? 2 Is it because
human beings have a natural tendency which counteracts
gio b the effect of locality and season (for, if both had the same
tendency, they would soon be destroyed) ? Now those who
are hot by nature are courageous and those who are cold
are cowardly. The effect of hot regions upon their in
habitants is to cool them (for, their bodies having rarities,
5 the heat escapes out of them), but those who live in a cold
climate become heated in their nature, because their flesh is
densified by the external cold, and when it is in this
condition the heat collects internally.

1 For references to the Flood in Aristotle see Pol. I269 a 4ff.,
Meteor. 352 b 16 ff. Synesius is perhaps referring to this passage

when he says (Encom. Calvit. 22) nepl &>v Trnpot/utW ApiororeX^s

OTL TrnXcua? 0tXocro(/)/ns (v.l. ttrropias 1 ) f v rai9 pfyiVrni? (pdopals a7ro\op.vrjS

ey/caTaezuaru Trfpicrco^eVrn $ia frvvro^ iai K.IU Se^iorryra. The doctrine of
the Flood is also found in Theophrastus, cp. J. Bernays, Theophrastos*
Schrift iiber Frommigkeit, p. 50. Plato refers to the Flood in Tim.
22 A, c, 23 A, B, Crit. 1 09 D, in E; for other classical references see
J. B. Mayor s note on Juvenal i. 83.

2 This problem is partly identical with chapter 8.

gio b

BOOK XV

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH
MATHEMATICAL THEORY

1 WHY is it that of all the lines which divide a rectilinear
figure into two parts that drawn from angle to angle alone
bears the name of diameter ? l Is it because the diameter, as
its name implies, divides the figure of which it is the dia
meter into two parts without destroying it ? The line
therefore which divides it at its joints 2 (by which I mean 15
the angles) will be the diameter ; for it does not destroy
the figure but divides it, like those who divide up
implements of war for distribution. But a division which
cuts through a composite figure in the lines which form it
destroys the figure ; for a rectilinear figure is constructed
on angles.

2 Why is the diameter so called ? 3 Is it because it is the
only line which divides a rectilinear figure into two parts,
as though one should call it the dichameter ? 4 And why 5 20
is it the only one that bears this name of all the lines which
divide a rectilinear figure into two parts ? Is it because it

is the only line which divides the figure at the points
where its limbs bend, 6 whereas all other lines divide it in its
sides ?

3 Why do all men, barbarians and Greeks alike, count up
to 10 and not up to any other number, saying for example,

2, 3, 4, 5 and then repeating them, one -five , two-five , 25

1 SidncTpos has the meanings both of diameter and diagonal.

2 The rectilinear figure is conceived as something organic, its sides
being members which are jointed together at the angles ; this is more
clearly brought out in 11. 21, 22 below.

3 A repetition in a shorter form of chapter i.

4 i.e. that which measures into two parts . All the MSS. here
read 8ici/i6T/>or, but the emendation to Sixap-fTpos is certainly correct.

5 Reading with Bekker 8u\ ri for Sidu.

6 Cp. above, 11. 14, 15 and note.

gio b PROBLEMATA

just as they say eleven, twelve ? l Or why do they not stop
at some point beyond ten and repeat from there ? For
every number is made up of one, two, &c., combined with
a preceding number, 2 and thus a different number is formed ;
but the counting always proceeds in fixed sets of ten. For
it is clearly not the result of chance that all men 3 invariably

30 count in tens ; and that which is invariable and universal
is not the result of chance, but is in the nature of things.
Is it because ten is a perfect number ? For it combines
every kind of number, odd and even, square 4 and cube,
length and surface, prime and composite. Or is it because
ten is the original number, since one, two, three, and four

35 together make ten ? 5 Or is it because the bodies which
move in the heavens are nine in number ? 6 Or is it
because in ten proportions four cubic numbers result, 7 from
which numbers the Pythagoreans 8 declare that the whole
universe is constituted ? Or is it because all men have ten
fingers, and so, as though possessing counters that indicate
gil a the numbers proper to man, they count all other things by
this quantity ? One race among the Thracians alone of all
men count in fours, because their memory, like that of
children, cannot extend farther and they do not use a large
number of anything.

(Why is it that the shapes of the heavenly bodies always 4
5 appear to us the same ? Is it) 9 because the earth is a
centre ? For the shapes which appear to us are always

1 The Greek ev8(Ka, 8u(Ka, one-ten 3 , two-ten , bring out the point
better than the English eleven , twelve .

2 e. g. thirty-one, thirty-two, &c.

3 Reading with Bekker TTOIOVVTZS (Trdvres ) fyaivovTai.

4 Omitting the commas after apnov and Teipdyvvov.

5 i. e. ten, not one, is the unit, which for convenience has been
divided into four fractions i, 2, 3, and 4, which added together
make 10.

6 i. e. there are nine planets (including the sun and moon), which
with the addition of the earth make 10.

7 e. g. in ten proportions obtained by continuous multiplication of
I by 2 four cubes occur: i (i 3 ), 2, 4, 8 (2 s ), 16, 32, 64 (4 3 ), 128, 256,
512 (8 s ).

8 Diels, Vorsokr. I s , 350. i.

9 This problem is not translated in T. G. s Latin version and the
text is clearly unsatisfactory. The statement of the problem is derived
by Bussemaker from another ancient version.

BOOK XV. 4 gir

similar. This does not seem * to be so unless one views them
from the centre, but they would sometimes appear triangular,
sometimes irregular foursided figures, and sometimes take
other forms. 2 Now the earth would appear to us to be the
centre of the universe, if we could view it from the heavenly
bodies. For the earth being spherical, the centre of the uni
verse and of the earth will be the same. But we dwell on the 10
surface of the earth, so that it is not from the centre but at
the distance of half the diameter that the heavenly bodies
appear to have the shapes that they do appear to have.
What reason then is there why the appearance of their
shapes should not remain the same when the distance is
increased ?

5 Why is it that, although the sun moves with uniform
motion, yet the increase and decrease of the shadows is not
the same in any equal period of time ? :J Is it because the 15
angles to the objects seen, that is the angles made by
the rays 4 of the sun and subtending equal arcs, are equal ?
Now if these are equal, so also are the angles which the
rays when produced 5 make in the triangle formed by
the first ray 6 and the object seen and the shadow. If
the angles are equal, the line which is farther from the 20
object seen must be greater than that which is less far ;
for we know that this is so. Let the circumference,
therefore, be divided into any number of equal parts, and
let the object seen be S. When therefore the sun at A
falling on & 1 makes the shadow A, 8 the ray must fall on
A? But when the sun comes to B, the ray from B will 25

1 Reading with Bussemaker (ou) fio/cft.

2 No sense is to be made of the text as it stands ; in particular
there is nothing for TOVTOV (1. 9) to refer to. It seems probable that
something has fallen out owing to homoeoteleuton^ e.g. e SoKft (oV. TOV

df KOCT/JLOV av e So/ca) 17 yrj.

3 Putting the comma before, and not after, lv r lira X/JOPW.

4 Retaining the MS. reading VTTO TG>V UKTWUV.

Reading el <$ atrai, Km (s) K$a\\6[j.vai Troiovaiv (t^ aK.rl.ves.
T. G. renders quodsi illi aequales sunt, eductos quoque inde aequales
esse necesse est.

G i.e. the ray from the sun when it is at A to A, the top of the
object 6.

7 Reading 7rpocrfta\tv T<$ (W. D. R.), cp. 91 1 b 37.

8 Reading with Bussemaker 9A for 9A.

9 Reading with Bussemaker A for A.

gn a PROBLEMATA

fall within QA, 1 and similarly again when the sun comes to
r ; otherwise one straight line will touch another straight
line at two points. Since therefore AB is equal to BP, the
angles which subtend them 2 at A will also be equal, for
they are situated about the centre. But if the angles on
this side 3 of A are equal, so also are the corresponding
30 angles in the triangle ; for they are at the apices of the
first pair of angles. 4 So while the angle is divided into two
equal parts/ the line AE will be greater than the line EZ
within A@. G So too with the other angles formed by the
rays from the circumference. At the same time it is clear

A

A E Z

that the shadow must be shortest at midday and that then

35 its increases are least. For the sun is most over our head

at midday, and stifling heat occurs both for the reason just

mentioned 7 and because there is no wind ; for wind is

caused when the sun dissipates the air near the earth. If

gil b therefore it does so simultaneously in both hemispheres,

midnight and midday would naturally be windless.

1 Reading with Bussemaker 0A for 6A.

2 Reading VTTO ravrnif.

3 Reading with Bussemaker rr/Se for rfj.

4 i. e. the angle AAE equals the angle EAZ, these angles being at the
apices of the triangles AAB and BAP.

8 i.e. the angle AAZ is divided into two equal parts AAE and
EAZ.

6 Reading with Bussemaker /; AE rijs EZ eV rfj A0. The fact that
AE is greater than EZ proves the main point of the problem, viz. that
the decrease of the shadows is][not uniform in an equal period of time.

7 i. e. because the sun is directly overhead.

BOOK XV. 6 911

6 Why does the sun penetrating through quadrilaterals
form not rectilinear shapes but circles, as for instance when
it passes through wicker-work ? Is it because the projec- 5
tion of the vision is in the form of a cone, 1 and the base of a
cone is a circle, so that the rays of the sun always appear
circular on whatever object they fall ? For the figure
also formed by the sun must be contained by straight lines,
if the rays are straight ; for when they fall in a straight line
on to a straight line, they form a figure contained by straight
lines. And this is what happens with the rays ; for they 10
fall on the straight line of the wicker-work, at the point
where they shine through, and are themselves 2 straight, so
that their projection is a straight line. But because the
parts 3 of the vision which are cut off towards the extremi
ties of the straight lines are weak, the parts of the figure 15
about the angles are not seen ; but what there is of straight
line in the cone describes a straight line, while the rest does
not, but the sight falls on part of the figure without perceiving
it. For there are many things to which the sight penetrates
without our seeing them, objects, for instance, which are in
darkness. A similar phenomenon is the fact that a quadri
lateral figure appears polygonal, and at a greater distance
circular. Now since the projection of sight is in the form of 20
a cone, when the figure is removed to a distance the parts of
the vision which are cut off towards the angles, because they
are weak and few, do not see anything when the distance is
increased ; but the parts of the vision which fall upon the
centre of the figure, being numerous and strong, are more
persistent. When, therefore, the figure is near at hand, they 25
can 4 see the parts in the angles ; but, when the distance is
greater, 5 they cannot do so. For this reason too a curved
line removed to a distance appears straight, and the moon
on the eighth day seems to be contained by straight lines,
if the vision falls upon the line which encloses it and not on
its breadth. For when the circumference is near, the sight 3

1 Cp. above, 8;2 a 37.

2 Reading avral with Bekker.

8 Omitting dnb after aTroa-^o^eVnr, cp. below, 1. 22.

4 Reading bvvavrai (Sylb.).

5 Reading TrXe/oj/o? S aorcn) (W. D. R.).

gn b PROBLEMATA

can discern how much nearer one part of the circumference
is than another ; but when it is distant, the sight does not
perceive it clearly, and it seems to be equally distant ; and
so it appears to be straight.

35 Why, though the moon is spherical, do we see it straight 7
when it is half- full ? Is it because our vision and the
circumference of the circles which the sun makes when it
falls upon the moon are in the same plane ? Whenever
gi2 a this happens, the sun appears as a straight line ; for, since
that which casts its vision on a sphere must see a circle,
and the moon is spherical, and the sun looks down upon it,
there must be a circle which is caused by the sun. When
therefore this is opposite to us, the whole is visible and the

5 moon appears to be full ; but when it changes owing to the
altered position of the sun, its circumference becomes on a
plane with our sight and so it appears straight, and the rest
appears circular, because a hemisphere is opposite our
vision, and this has the appearance of a semicircle ; for the

10 moon is always facing our vision, but when the sun sheds
its rays we do not see it. And after the eighth day it
begins to fill out from the middle, because the sun as it
passes on makes the circle incline more towards us ; and the
circle being thus presented to view resembles the section of
a cone. It assumes a crescent -like appearance when the
sun changes its position ; for when the circle of the sun

15 reaches the extreme points, which make the moon seem
half- full, the circumference of the circle appears ; for it is
no longer in a straight line with the vision, but passes
beyond it. When this happens and the circle passes
through the same points, it must necessarily appear to have
a crescent shape ; for a part of the circle is directly on a

20 plane with the eye (a part of the circle, that is, which was
formerly opposite to us), 1 so that part of the brightness is
cut off. 2 Then the extremities too remain in the same
position, so that the moon must have a crescent shape to
a greater or less extent according to the sun s movement ;

1 Putting a comma after ovros.

2 Reading dirortp-vtrai (rt).

BOOK XV. 7 912*

for when the sun changes its position, the circle upon
which it looks also turns, remaining on the same points ;
for it might assume an infinite number of inclinations, since 25
an infinite number of the largest circles can be described
through the same points.

8 Why is it that the sun and moon, which are round, have
the appearance of being flat ? Is it because all things l of
which the distance is uncertain seem to be equidistant, when
they are more or less distant ? And so in a single body 3
composed of parts, provided that it is uniform in colour,
the parts must necessarily appear equidistant, and the equi
distant must appear to be uniform and flat.

g Why does the sun make long shadows as it rises and sets,
and shorter when it is high in the heavens, and shortest 35
of all at midday ? Is it because, as it rises, it will at first
make a shadow parallel to the earth and cast it to an
infinite distance, 2 and then make a long shadow, which

Z E B

grows ever less because the straight line from the higher
point falls within that from the lower point. Let AB be
the gnomon, 3 and JT and A two positions of the sun. The 40
ray from T, the line TZ, will fall outside the line AE ; 4 and gi2 b
the shadow BE is formed when the sun is higher in the
heavens, and BZ when it is lower, 5 and it will be shortest
when 6 the sun is at its highest and over our head.

1 Reading -n-uvTa.

2 Reading vTreprei/el, and omitting avivov as the corruption of a gloss

3 i.e. the pole or pillar used for casting a shadow, or the index of
a sun-dial.

4 Reading AE for TK.

5 Reading Karcorepco (W. D. R.) ior Karcorarco.

6 Reading orav ai/w-dro) r] (Ruelle).

gi2 b PROBLEMATA

Why are the shadows thrown by the moon longer than 10

5 those thrown by the sun, though both are thrown by the

same perpendicular object ? Is it because the sun is higher

than the moon, and so the ray from the higher point must

fall within that from the lower point ? Let A A be the

gnomon, B the moon, and P the sun. The ray from the
moon is JBZ, so that the shadow will be AZ ; but the ray
from the sun is PE, and its shadow therefore will necessarily
10 be less, viz. AE.

Why is it that during eclipses of the sun, if one views ll
them through a sieve or a leaf for example, that of a
plane-tree or any other broad-leaved tree or through the
two hands with the fingers interlaced, the rays are crescent-
shaped in the direction of the earth? 1 Is it because, just
as, when the light shines through an aperture with regular

1 5 angles, the result is a round figure, namely a cone 2 (the
reason being that two cones are formed, one between the
sun and the aperture and the other between the aperture
and the ground, and their apices meet), so, when under
these conditions part is cut off from the orb in the sky, 3
there will be a crescent on the other side of the aperture
from the illuminant, that is, in the direction of the earth

20 (for the rays proceed from that part of the circumference
which is a crescent) ? 4 Now as it were small 5 apertures are

1 i. e. on the lower side of the medium through which they shine.

2 Cp, 9ii b 5.

3 The Latin version of T. G. renders ergo cum pars orbi superior*
detrahitur, and something like the following is probably the right
reading, OTUV ovv ^6i Ta>v ouTcoy (rot;) tivadfv KVK\OV airoTffjivriTai (i~i^,
corai pivio-Kos KT\. * Placing a full Stop after aKrlves.

5 at 8e is certainly corrupt, and we should probably read piKpal Se,
which is indicated by the Latin version of T. G., pro foraminum
exiguitate, and which is implied by the contrast of i) Sia

BOOK XV. ii 9 i2 b

formed between the fingers and in a sieve, and so the
phenomenon can be more clearly demonstrated than when
the rays pass through wide apertures. Such crescents are
not formed by the moon, whether in eclipse or waxing or
waning, because the rays from its extremities are not clear-
cut, but it sheds its light from the middle, and the middle 25
portion of the crescent is but small.

12 Why does the parhelion not occur either when the sun
is in mid-heaven or above the sun or below it, but only at
the side of it ? Is it because the parhelion is produced
when our visual ray to the sun is refracted, and this station- 3
ary condition of the air, on the occasion of which the vision
is refracted, cannot occur either near the sun or far away
from it ? For, if it is near, the sun will dissolve it, whereas,
if it is far away, the sight will not be refracted ; for, if it is
strained to a distance, it is weak when refracted from a
small refractor. 1 (So too a halo does not form.) If then
a refractor forms opposite the sun and near to it, the sun 35
will dissolve it, whereas if it be far away, the incidence of
the sight upon it will be too weak. If, however, it forms at
the side of the sun, it is possible for the refractor to be at
such a distance that neither does the sun dissolve it nor does
the sight ascend weakened 2 by passing under the earth.
It does not form below the sun because, being near the earth, 40
it would be dissolved by the sun ; whereas, if it were above
the sun when the sun is in mid-heaven, the sight would be Ql3 a
distracted. And it cannot form at all even at the side of
the sun when it is in mid- heaven, because, if the sight is
directed too far under the earth, very little of it will reach
the refractor, so that, when it is refracted, it will be very 3
weak.

13 Why does the extremity of the shadow caused by the 5
sun seem to tremble ? For it is not due to the fact that the

1 i. e. the stationary air. Sight and light are identified here as else
where frequently in the Problems, the sight being said to travel up to
the object seen and back again to the eye.

2 Reading avdtvi) for a6p6av, which gives exactly the opposite of the
sense required, cp. below, 9i3 a 2-4.

3 Reading iraw with Ruelle.

9 i 3 a PROBLEMATA

sun is travelling along ; for it is impossible for it to move
in contrary directions, and it is of such motion that trem
bling consists. (Moreover it is uncertain why a shadow
changes its position, as also why the sun itself moves.) Is
it due to the movement of the so-called motes in the air ?

10 These can be seen in the rays which enter through a
window ; for they move even when there is no wind. These
then being constantly carried from the shadow into the light
and from the light into the shadow, the common boundary
between the light and the shadow is seen to move similarly.
For changing l from side to side of it, these motes cause as
it were shadow in one place and light in another ; so that

15 the shadow appears to move, though it is not really it but
the motes which move in this way. 2

1 Reading ^iera/3uXAorra for p.(Tapd\\oi>T(n.

2 Reading eWfa for eKeivai with Bussemaker.

BOOK XVI

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH INANIMATE
THINGS

1 WHY is it that the bases of bubbles in water are white,
and if they are placed in the sun they do not make any 2 o
shadow, but, while the rest of the bubble casts a shadow, the
base does not do so but is surrounded on all sides by sun
light ? And, what is still more wonderful, even if apiece of
wood is placed on the water in the sunlight, (there is no
continuous shadow but) l it is cut off by the water at that
point. 2 Is no shadow really formed ? Is the shadow dissolved
by the sun ? If then a shadow is to be defined as anything 35
which is not visible to the sun, the whole mass of the object
all round must be visible to the sun ; but the impossibility
of this has been demonstrated in the treatises on optics,"
for even the largest optical system cannot see the whole
circumference of the smallest visible object.

2 Why are bubbles hemispherical ? Is it because the radii
between the centre and the outer air extend in every direc
tion upwards to the same distance and thus necessarily 30
produce a hemispherical form ? The corresponding hemi
sphere below is cut off by the watery surface in which
the central point is situated.

3 Why is it that in magnitudes of uneven weight, 4 if you
set the lighter part of them in motion, the object throw r n

1 The text here makes no sense, and it is clear from T. G., who
renders nee si lignum per aquam in sole apposueris^ umbra ligni
contimia exsultabit sed, &c., that something has fallen out.

2 raCra gives no possible sense, and TVT/ (= on the surface of the
water ) has been translated.

3 There is no evidence that Aristotle wrote a work on Optics (cp.
Bonitz, Index, 104* 61 ff.) ; so we must suppose a general reference
here to works on Optics, cp. 959 b 2 ot 7re/u TO. OTTTIKU.

4 The example of the loaded dice indicates that we should read

fiapos for j3ci0o?.

645-25 JVf

gi3 a PKOBLEMATA

35 revolves in a circle, as happens, for example, with loaded
dice if you throw them with the unweighted side turned
towards you ? l Is it because the heavier part cannot travel
at the same speed as the lighter when hurled with the same
force ? Now the object must travel as a single whole, but
gi3 b cannot move alike in all its parts ; therefore if the parts were
moved with equal speed they would move in the same line,
while since one part 2 travels more quickly than the other, the
object necessarily revolves as it moves ; for it is only in
this manner that the parts 3 which are always opposite one
5 another can follow unequal paths in the same time.

Why is it that objects which fall to the earth and rebound 4
describe similar angles to the earth s surface on either side
of the point at which they touch the surface ? 4 Is it because
all things naturally tend to travel at right angles to the
earth ? Objects, therefore, which fall upon the ground at

10 right angles, striking the surface perpendicularly and dia
metrically, when they rebound, form angles of that size, 5
because the diameter divides the angle at the surface into
equal parts. But objects which fall obliquely, since they do
not strike the ground perpendicularly but at a point above
the perpendicular, when they are thrust back by that against

15 which they strike, travel in the opposite direction. This in
the case of round objects is due to the fact that, 6 striking
against it 7 in their course, they revolve in an opposite
direction to that in which they are thrust back, whether
their central point is at rest or changes its position. In the
case of rectilinear objects it is due to the fact that their
perpendicular is thrown backwards after being brought
forward; 8 just as happens to those whose legs are sheared

1 This problem is partly identical with chapter 12 below.

2 i. e. the lighter. 3 Reading ra (W. D. R.) for
4 Cp. chapter 13. 6 i.e. right angles.

6 ore of the Teubner text is a misprint for on.

7 fv aurtu is perhaps corrupt.

8 Reading tita TO rf^v Kadtrov a\)Ta>v tls T<wjj.wpocr6(v
fKKpoveadai. T. G. renders rectis vero compacia lineis, quod per-
pendiculum eorum in par tern prior em adductum retorquetur. The
corruption of irpoa-fvexOelcrav may have been due to a desire to provide
a princioal verb, which is unnecessary, since crvpftaivfi <pepfcr@ai is to
be supplied from 11. 14-15.

BOOK XVI. 4 9 3 b

away from under them or whose scrotum is pulled down- 20
wards, for such persons always fall in a contrary direction
and backwards, because their perpendicular is raised above
the ground 1 and then thrust forward. For clearly the
opposite of perpendicularity will be to fall backwards and
downwards, and objects carried downwards would be
heavier. That, therefore, which in these persons involves 25
a fall, becomes movement in rebounding- objects. Neither
round nor rectilinear objects therefore rebound at right
angles, because the perpendicular divides the objects in
motion into two parts depthways, and there cannot be
several perpendiculars to the same plane surface cutting
one another, 2 which will happen if a perpendicular is formed 30
at the moment of their impact at the point where the object
in motion strikes the plane surface, 3 so that the original
perpendicular along 4 which it travelled must necessarily be
cut by the new perpendicular. Now since the object will
be borne back, but will not be borne back at a right angle,
it remains that the angle on either side of the point of
impact with the plane surface must be an acute angle ; for 35
the right angle forms the division between the opposite
angles.

5 Why is it that a cylinder, when it is set in motion, travels
straight and describes straight lines with the circles in
which it terminates, whereas a cone revolves in a circle, its
apex remaining still, and describes a circle with the circle in 9H*
which it terminates ? Both move with a circular motion,
but the cylinder describes straight lines on the plane surface,
while the cone describes circles because the circles which
compose the cone are unequal and the greater circle
always moves more quickly than the less about the same 5

1 Omitting ladfeiv avra and reading eWtVrovoriJ/ 8t.a TO rrjv
re copoy re KT\. (W. D. R.).

2 Reading avT<is for aura s- (so too Bussemaker).

3 The text as it stands will not translate, since the repetition of

gives two principal verbs. C a omits UTT avrtjs . . .
; but better sense is gained by omitting Si^oro/netcr^at . . .
t, its insertion being probably due to a gloss on the words
immediately following.

4 Reading *< rjs (Bussemaker).

N 2

gi 4 a PROBLEMATA

centre. Now since all the circles composing the cone move
at different rates, it results that the outermost circles travel
over most space and describe the longest line in the
same time (hence they must move in a circle) ; for all the
circles are described by the same straight line, 1 and when

10 the straight line revolves the various points on it do not
describe an equal line in the same time, but can travel along
an equal line only if they proceed in a straight direction.
But in the cylinders, since all the circles are equal and
about the same centre, the result is 2 that, since they touch
the plane surface at all the points on them at the same
time, as they roll they travel at a uniform speed (because

^cylinders 3 are uniform throughout), and reach the plane
surface again simultaneously when each has completed its
own circuit ; thus the straight lines described on the plane
surface are also equal, for the circles describe them by
contact, since they both are equal and travel at the same
speed. Now the lines described by the same line travel
ling in a straight direction 4 are straight, and so the

20 cylinder would travel 5 straight along them ; for it makes
no difference whether you drag the cylinder over the plane
surface at the line where it first G touched the plane surface,
or whether you roll it over it ; 7 for the result will always
be that an equal and similar line made up of points on the
cylinder will touch the plane surface, both when the cylinder
is dragged and when it is rolled along.

25 Why is it that the section of a rolled book, which is flat, 8 6
if you cut it parallel to the base becomes straight when

1 i.e. the line from the apex of the cone to the point of contact of
the plane surface and the base of the cone.

2 The sense here is clear and is that of the Latin version of T. G.,
Evenit ut et simul suis omnibus punctis planum contingendo parili
celeritate volvantur. Hence avpficiLvei aim roO eViTJ-eSou ra eV avrols
TrdvO UTTTO/xeVous crr/fieta 0e f>eo-$at is read.

3 Bonitz, op. cit., p. 412, reads KVK\OVS for <v\iv8povs ; but TOVS
KVK\OVS is already the subject of the sentence and would not be
repeated, and TOVS KvXivdpovs clearly refers to cylinders in general.

4 i. e. when drawn along instead of being rolled.

5 Reading av (pepoiTO for aracjbepoiro.

6 Reading /} TT/JCOTT; for rj 17 Trpcor^ (so too Bussemaker).

7 Reading auro> (Bonitz) for avro.

8 Omitting al evdfla with C a .

BOOK XVI. 6

unrolled, but if it is cut obliquely becomes crooked? 1
Is it due to the fact that, since the circles in the first section
are in the same plane, the result is that the oblique section
is not parallel but is partly 2 more and partly less distant
from the first section, so that, when the roll is unfolded, the
circles, which are in the same plane and have their origin 30
in the same plane, 3 assume, when unrolled, the line which
they themselves form ? For the resulting line is formed
from the circles which are in the same plane, so that the
line, being on a plane, is also straight. But the line 4 of the
oblique section when it is unrolled, not being parallel to 35
the first section, but partly more and partly less distant
from it (this being the position of the section relative to it)>
will not be on a plane and therefore not straight either ;
for part of a straight line cannot be in one plane and part
in another.

7 Why is it that magnitudes always appear less when
divided up than when taken as a whole ? Is it because,
though things which are divided always possess number,
in size they are smaller than that which is single and
undivided ? For that which is great is said to be great
owing to its continuity and because it is of a certain size,
but the number of its parts 5 is always greater than the
number of any undivided magnitude. So it is only natural 5
that the whole should appear greater than the parts into
which it is divided ; for, though the whole and its parts are
identical, the whole, being continuous, possesses more of
the quality of magnitude, while the parts have more of the
quality of number.

8 Of the phenomena which occur in the water-clock the
cause seems to be in general that ascribed by Anaxagoras ; t

1 The problem might be stated in other words thus: Why does
a roll which is made up of sections of parchment unroll absolutely
straight if all sections are cut square, while it will not do so if any
section is cut obliquely ?

2 Reading d\\a rrj ^v (W. D. R.).

3 Reading a comma instead of a full stop after eViTrefiw.

4 Reading 17 de for fj re.

5 Reading 6 8e dpidpos (ra>i> pep&v) IT as KrX., to complete the sense ;
T. G. renders numems vero partium omnis.

6 Diels, Vorsokr? i, p. 390, 28 ff. ; cp. P/iys. 213*27. The present

9i4 b PROBLEMATA

for the air which is cut off within it is the cause of the water
not entering when the tube has been closed. The air, how
ever, by itself is not the cause ; for if one plunges the water-
clock obliquely into the water, having first blocked up the
tube, the water will enter. So Anaxagoras does not adequately

15 explain how the air is the cause ; though, as has been said,
it certainly is the cause. Now air, whether impelled along
or travelling of itself without any compelling force, naturally
travels in a straight line like the other l elements. When
therefore the water-clock is plunged obliquely into the
water, the air preserving its straight course is driven out

ao by the water through the holes opposite to those which are
in the water, and, as it goes out, the water flows in. But if
the water-clock is plunged upright into the water, the air
not being able to pass straight up, because the upper parts
are closed, remains round the first holes ; for it cannot
contract 2 into itself." The fact that the air can keep out

25 the water by its immobility can be illustrated by an experi
ment with the water-clock itself. For if you fill the bulb
itself of the water-clock with water, having stopped up the
tube, and invert it with the tube downwards, the water does
not flow along the tube to the outlet. And when the outlet
is opened, it does not immediately flow out along the tube

30 but only after a moment s interval, since it is not already at
the outlet of the tube but passes along it afterwards, when
it is opened. But when the water-clock is full and in an
upright position, the water passes through the strainer 4 as
soon as ever the tube is opened, because it is in contact
with the strainer, whereas it is not in contact with the

35 extremities of the tube. The water does not, therefore, flow
into the water-clock, for the reason already mentioned, but

passage is the locus classicus on the construction of the clepsydra, or
water-clock, in its simplest form as used in the law courts to regulate
the length of speeches. It appears to have been a hollow globe
terminating above in a narrow neck or tube (av\6s) with a stopper and
with several holes at the bottom, through which the water escaped
when the vessel was filled and the stopper removed.

1 Reading ruXXa.

2 Reading o-drTfcrOai (Bonitz).

3 Reading avrbv (so also Diels) ; T. G. renders in sese contrahi
non possit.

4 i. e. the holes at the bottom of the bulb of the water-clock.

BOOK XVI. 8 gi 4 b

flows out when the tube is opened because the air in it being-
set in motion up and down causes considerable movement 1
in the water inside the water-clock. The water then, being 1
thrust downwards and having itself also a tendency in that
direction, naturally flows out, forcing its way through the air
outside the water-clock, which is set in motion and is equal in 9*5*
force to the air which impels it but weaker than it in its power
of resistance, because the interior air, since it passes through
the tube, which is narrow, flows more quickly and violently
and forces the water on. The reason why the water does
not flow w r hen the tube is closed is that the water on 5
entering into the water-clock drives the air forcibly out
of it. (That this is so is shown by the breath and noise
engendered in it as the water enters. 2 ) And driving the
air forcibly along it rushes into the tube itself, and 3 like
wedges 4 of wood or bronze driven in by cleavage, remains
in position without anything else to hold it together, until 10
it is expelled from the opposite direction, as pegs 5 which
are broken in wood are knocked out. This occurs when
the tube is opened for the reasons already mentioned. If
this is the reason, it is only natural that it 7 should not flow
out or make its way forth, since the air forcibly prevents it 8
and becomes inflated. (The noise which is made shows that 15
the water is drawn up by the air, and this is a common
phenomenon.) All the water then, being drawn up and
being in itself 9 continuous, remains in the same position
under the pressure of the air, until it is thrust away again
by it ; and, since the first part of the water remains in the
same position, the rest of the water is dependent from it in

1 Reading Kii>r]<TLv for KWOHTIV ; T. G. renders motum excitat
pleniorem.

2 Reading epvyp-os elauh Tos TOV vdnros ; T. G. renders spiritus
ructusque quos ingrediente humore intus excitari sentimus,

2 Reading /3/a (5 } udovv <rui>ei(r/ri7rrei (Is rov <ivhbi> nvrbv (K(U)
Kaddrrep.

Reading e/nTneora with Y a .

Reading, with Diels, eiriovpovs.

Reading ft with all the best MSS., and placing a comma after

T(/UTU.

Reading avrb (Bussernaker).

Reading /) ei{evai K<uAu)oi/ros (with Diels) /3i a rou aepos-.

Diels reads ai/ra> (sc. rat aepi).

gi5 a PROBLEMATA

one continuous mass. It is only natural that this should be
20 so ; for it is the property of the same thing to move some
thing from its own place and to hold it when it has moved
it, 1 and to do so for a longer time, if that which holds and
that which is held are of equal force, or if that which holds 2
is stronger, as occurs in the present case ; for air has greater
force than water.

35 Why is it that the parts of plants and of animals which 9
have no functional importance are all round in plants, for
instance, the stem and the shoots, and in animals the legs,
thighs, arms, and chest and no whole or part is triangular
or multi-angular ? Is it due, as Archy tas 3 used to say, to

30 the fact that in natural movement the proportion of equality
is always present (for he holds that all things move in a
proportion), and that this is the only proportion which can
return to itself, and so it forms circles and rotundities
wherever it occurs ?

Why do extremities always take rounded forms ? Is it 10
because nature makes everything as excellent and as
35 beautiful as the available material permits, and a rounded
form is the most beautiful, being as uniform as possible ?

Why does a circular object 4 when it is thrown at first II
describe a straight line, but, as it ceases to move, describe
a spiral, until it falls ? Does it describe a straight line at
first, because the air on either side of it alike keeps it
gi5 b upright ? The inclination then to either side being equal,
the line also which it describes must be of such a nature
that it divides the space on either side of it equally,
and such a line is a straight line. But when it inclines
to one side, because the air on either side of it is not
even, it no longer describes an equal line with its inner
5 and with its outer edge, but is forced to describe a circular
line.

1 Reading &$ (Kivr]<rev (Bussemaker) for o>s eKcivrjs.

2 Reading TO i^xov (so too Bussemaker).

3 The Pythagorean philosopher.

4 The writer has no doubt a flat-edged discus in mind as the
circular object.

BOOK XVI. 12 gi5 b

12 Why is it that in magnitudes of uneven weight, 1 if you
set the 2 lighter part of them in motion, the object thrown
revolves in a circle, as happens for example with loaded
dice if you throw them with the unweighted side towards
you ? 3 Is it because the heavier part cannot travel at the 10
same speed as the lighter when hurled with the same force ?
Now since it must necessarily move, but cannot do so in the
same manner, that is in a straight line, it must take an
inward direction and revolve ; just as, if part of the object
had as a whole remained motionless owing to a weight in
the centre, the part next to the person setting the object
in motion would have moved so as to occupy the position
of the part away from him, while the farther side would 15
have moved towards him. But when the whole object
moves and, as it travels, has a weight in the middle, it must
necessarily behave in the same manner. 4

13 Why is it that objects which are travelling along, when
they come into collision with anything, rebound in a direc
tion opposite to that in which they are naturally travelling,
and at similar angles ? 5 Is it because they move not only
with the impetus which accords with their own nature but 20
also with that which is due to the agent which throws them ?
Their own impetus then ceases when they reach their own
proper position (for everything comes to rest when it reaches
the position to which it is naturally carried), but, owing to
the extraneous impetus, it is forced to continue to move,
not, however, in a forward direction, because it is prevented 25
from doing so, but either sideways or in a direct line
backwards. Now every object rebounds at similar angles,
because it is travelling to the point to which it is carried by
the impetus which was imparted by the person who threw

it ; and at that point it must be travelling at an acute angle
or at a right angle. Since then the repelling object stops
the movement in a straight line, it stops alike the moving

1 Reading ftapos for ftddos ; see note on 91 3 a 34.

2 Reading (TO) Kovcporepov with Richards; cp. 9i3 a 35, 9i5 b 9f.

3 This problem is partly identical with chapter 3 above.

4 i. e. revolve. D Cp. chapter 4.
6 We should probably read OTTIO-QCV (W. D. R.) for 6p66i>.

915

PROBLEM AT A

30 object and its impetus. As then in a mirror the image
appears at the end of the line along which the sight travels,
so the opposite occurs in moving objects, for they are
repelled at an angle of the same magnitude as the angle at
the apex l (for it must be observed that both the angle and
the impetus are changed), and in these circumstances it is

35 clear that moving objects must rebound at similar angles.

1 Let A be the point from which the
object is thrown, and BC a wall against
which it strikes at the point D. The
angle which it forms, ADC, will be 17 Kara
Kopwfirjv yavia. The object will rebound
to E forming the angle BDE which will
equal the angle A DC. Thus the object
rebounds at a similar angle . The above
is a case where the object strikes the wall
at an acute angle ; if it strikes it at right
angles the similar angles will be right
angles.

BOOK XVII

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH ANIMATE
THINGS

I WHY do those who are unsymmetrical appear larger
when set side by side with other men l than by themselves ?
Is it because that which is symmetrical is one, and symmetry
more than anything else gives unity to a thing, and that 916
which is one tends to be indivisible, and the indivisible is
smaller, whereas asymmetry by causing diversity creates
a multiplicity ? When things therefore are seen by them
selves, their dimensions are less likely to be noticed ; but
this is not so when they are seen side by side with one
another. That then which is indivisible appears to be one, 5
and the impression which it makes on the beholder is one
because of its symmetry. But that which is unsymmetrical
makes a greater impression, as though it \vere many, and
appears greater because, though in reality only one, it
seems to be many ; for it partakes of the nature of magni
tude, because it is continuous, and of number, because of
the inequality of its parts ; and so being increased in both ro
these respects, it naturally appears great by the side of that
which is simple and one.

2 Why do animals and plants grow more in length than
otherwise ? Is it because length increases three times over,
width twice, and depth once ? Eor length is the first and
original dimension, and so it increases both of itself, and 15
secondly in combination with width, and thirdly in combina-

-, if retained here, must be used not in its fullest reciprocal
sense, but more generally of other men , i. e. members of the same
species but not aa{<pp.erpm. If this involves too much straining of the
meaning of aXX^Aour, the simplest change is to aXXous-. It is quite
clear from 91 6 a II that the unsymmetrical are contrasted not with one
another but with the symmetrical (there called ro unXovv Kal /). The
Latin version implies the reading crupperpov?, which is perhaps right,
the reading aXX^Xou? having arisen either from Trap u XXf/Xa of 9i6 a 5,
or from a gloss on no-uppeYpous- copied by mistake for

gi6 a PROBLEMATA

tion with depth. But width implies an increase in two
dimensions only, in itself and at the same time in depth. 1

In what sense must we understand the terms * prior and 3
4 posterior ? As those who lived in the time of Troy are
4 prior to us, so are those who lived before them 4 prior to

20 them and so on ad infinitum ? Or since there is a beginning
and a middle and an end of the universe, and when a man,
as he becomes old, reaches the limit and turns again towards
the beginning, 2 that 3 which is nearer to the beginning is
earlier, what prevents our being nearer to the beginning
than to the end, in which case we should be prior ? Just

25 as the course 4 of the firmament and of each of the stars is
a circle, why should not also the coming into being and the
decay of perishable things be of such a kind that the same
things 5 again come into being and decay ? This agrees
with the saying that human life is a circle . To demand
that those who are coming into being should always be
numerically identical is foolish, but one would more readily

30 accept the theory of the identity of the species. And so we
should ourselves be prior , and one might suppose the
arrangement of the series to be such that it returns back in
a circle to the point from which it began and thus secures
continuity and identity of composition. For Alcmaeon "
declares that men perish because they cannot link together

35 the beginning to the end 8 a clever saying, if one supposes
that he uses it metaphorically and the literal meaning is not
insisted upon. If then human life is a circle, and a circle
has neither beginning nor end, we should not be prior to
those who lived in the time of Troy nor they prior to us
by being nearer to the beginning.

| Reading pdtiei for /ieye &i with Bonitz, op. cit., p. 412.

2 i. e. the point where existence and non-existence meet.

3 Omitting fie. 4 Reading, with Richards, /; <op.

5 Reading ravra for ravra.

6 Cp. Phys. 223 b 24 ; Herodot. i. 107 ; Tac. Ann. iii. 55.

7 Alcmaeon of Croton, cp. Met. 986 a 27 and Ross s note; H. A.
492 a 14, 58 1 a 1 6 ; and Diels, Vorsokr?, p. 135, 10.

8 i.e. when a man reaches the end of life, personal identity is lost
and the new life starts with a new personality.

BOOK XVIII

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH LITERARY
STUDY

WHY is it that some people, if they begin to read, are9i6 b
overcome by sleep even against their will, whereas others
wishing to be overcome by sleep are kept awake by taking
up a book ? l Is it because in those in whom movements
of breath take place owing to the coldness of their nature 5
or of melancholic humours, which by their coldness engender
an unconcocted excretion of breath in such people, the
intelligence, when it is set in motion and does not think of
anything with concentrated attention, is checked by the
second movement, 2 which has a cooling effect, and this
causes a tendency to sleep ? But when they fix the intelli
gence firmly upon something, as happens in reading-, they 10
are impelled by the heating movement, which is unchecked
by anything, and so they cannot go to sleep. In those who are
in a natural condition, however, when the intelligence, which
is very powerful, stands at a single point and does not keep
changing from one subject to another, every function in that
region 3 (whose inactivity involves sleep) is at a standstill ; 4 15
and when the intelligence stands still and is as it were weary,
being situated in the head, it weighs it down and produces
sleep. But as long as the mind moves naturally, it does
not go to sleep ; for it is then that it is most alive, and
wakefulness rather rj than sleeping is the cause of life.

1 A comparison with the parallel passage in chapter 7, which clearly
deals with the same problem and is partly identical with the present
chapter, shows that TOVS de ftov\o[j.fvovs noifl fyprjyopcvai must be read
here; cp. 9i7 a 19 and note (so too Bussemaker).

2 i. e. the unconcocted excretion of breath.

3 i. e. the head.

4 Reading ten-arm as in 9l7 a 3O.

5 Reading with Bonitz, op. cit., 413, (juaXXov) atndf eorii> ; but
alriav is possibly itself corrupt and some such word as Idiairepov,
more characteristic of, seems to be required.

gi6 b PROBLEMATA

Why are contentious disputations useful as a mental 2
exercise ? Is it because they involve frequent victories and
20 defeats ? They therefore quickly instil a spirit of rivalry ;
for, when men are victorious, they are induced by their joy
to contend yet more, and, when they are defeated, they
continue the struggle in hopes of turning defeat into victory.
Those engaged in struggles of other kinds act in the same
way, and so when fighting and getting the worst of it often
refuse to come to terms.

25 Why is it that in rhetorical displays men prefer examples l 3
and fables 2 rather than enthymemes ? 3 Is it because they
like to learn and to learn quickly, and this end is achieved
more easily by examples and fables, since these are familiar
to them and are of the nature of particulars, 4 whereas
enthymemes are proofs based on generalities, with which

30 we are less familiar than with the particular ? Further, we
attach more credence to any evidence which is supported
by several witnesses, and examples and fables resemble
evidence, and proofs supported by witnesses are easily
obtained. Further, men like to hear of similarities, and
examples and fables display similarities. 5

35 Why do we talk of an orator, or a general, or a business 4
man as being shrewd, but not use the term of a musician
or of an actor ? Is it because the powers of the two last
are exercised apart from any desire of gaining an advantage
(for their aim is pleasure), whereas the three first aim at
some advantage ? For a good orator or general or business
gi7 a man is one who can gain some advantage, and shrewdness
consists mainly in getting the better of some one else.

Why is the philosopher generally regarded as superior 5
to the orator ? 6 Is it because the philosopher treats of the
nature of injustice, while the orator says that such and such
a person is unjust, and the orator states that such and such

1 Cp. Rhet. I357 b 25-30, Rhet. ad Alex. 1429* 21 ff.

2 Xoyoi here equivalent to ^vdot, cp. below, 1. 35.

3 Cp. Rhet. I357 a 32 ff., Rhet. ad Alex. 1430** 23 ff.

4 Cp. Rhet. I357 a 27, 28. 5 Cp. Rhet. ad Alex. 1429* 25-7.
6 This problem is repeated in a longer form in xxx. 9.

BOOK XVIII. 5 917*

a person is a tyrant, while the philosopher discusses the
nature l of tyranny ?

5 Why is it that some men spend their time in pursuits which
they have chosen, though these are sometimes mean, rather
than in more honourable professions ? Why, for example,
should a man who chooses to be a conjurer or an actor or
a piper prefer these callings to that of an astronomer or an
orator ? Is it because some men would prefer to undertake
the more honourable professions but do not do so because 10
they do not feel confident that they would succeed in them ?
Or is it because each man chooses the calling in which he
thinks he can excel and devotes himself to that which he
chooses, giving up the greater part of each day to it, in
order that he may improve his own proficiency 2 in it ?
Now when men have chosen a calling from the first and 15
have become accustomed to it, they lose the pow r er of
discriminating between the higher and the lower ; for their
mind is warped by their bad choice.

7 Why is it that some persons, if they begin to read, are
overcome by sleep even against their will, whereas those
who wish to go to sleep are made unable to do so if
they take up a book ? 3 Is it because in those in whom 2 o
movements of breath take place owing to the coldness of
their nature or of melancholic humours, which by their
coldness engender an unconcocted excretion of breath in
these w r hen the intelligence is set in motion and does not
think of anything with concentrated attention, the intelli
gence is checked by the second movement, 4 and so they
undergo a great mental change and go to sleep (for the 25
movement of breath is overcome) ? But when they fix their
intelligence on something, as happens in reading, they are
impelled by the movement of breath 5 unchecked by any-

1 Reading, with Richards, irotov.

2 Reading Kparia-Tfixav (cp. above, 1. 12) for Kparurros wv.

The problem of this chapter is obviously the same as that of
chapter I and we must read rovs 5e @ov\ofj.evovs ov notel 8vva<rdai
(W.D.R.).

4 Reading r// ere pa Kivrjcra, cp. above, 9i6 b 8 and note.

6 The parallel passage (9i6 b 10) has 6epjMVTiKr)s, but TrvevfiariK^s can
stand here since rj -nvfv^ariKrj and y dep^avriKt] KIVIJCTLS both refer to

9 i7 a PROBLEMATA

thing, and so cannot sleep. But in those who are in a
natural condition, when the intelligence is fixed on one

30 thing and does not keep changing from one subject to
another, every function in that region (the inactivity of
which involves sleep) is at a standstill. (Similarly during a
rout, 1 if the leader halts, all the forces under his command
halt also.) For naturally that which is light rises, while the
heavy sinks.- As long, therefore, as the mind moves
naturally, it does not go to sleep ; for it is then that it is

35 most alive. 3 When the mind stands still and is as it were
weary, the intellect undergoes a change, and the corporeal
elements rise to the head and produce sleep. Reading
might be expected to prevent sleep ; but wakefulness is not
due to the fact that we are thinking (for then our mind is
most concentrated) but to the constant change ; for the
giy b intellectual activities which cause wakefulness are those in
which the mind searches and finds difficulties rather than
those in which it pursues continual contemplation ; for the
former cause lack of concentration, while the latter do not.

Why is it that in contentious disputes no trifling can ever 8
occur ? Is it because such reasoning is apparent syllogism,
5 and syllogism involves only a brief discussion ; and, if it be
prolonged, after a time the false reasoning is detected and
the disputant can withdraw the premisses which he has
granted ?

Why do we feel more pleasure in listening to narratives 9
in which the attention is concentrated on a single point than
in hearing those which are concerned with many subjects ?
10 Is it because we pay more attention to and feel more pleasure
in listening to things which are more easily comprehended,
and that which is definite is more easily comprehended

the same thing, viz. the movement of breath when it is unaffected by
natural cold or melancholic humours.
Cp. Post. An. ioo a 12.

2 This sentence seems out of place here and would make better
sense if it were inserted after Tj-otei rbv vrrvov, 1. 36.

3 ourco yap e^fi gives no sense and is obviously corrupt. As the
parallel passage 9i6 b 17 has >/ yap Tore /xaXtora, we should here read
ovrco yap ?; /xaAiara or something similar.

BOOK XVIII. 9 917

than that which is indefinite ? Now a single thing is definite,
but a plurality partakes of the nature of the infinite.

IO Why do we like to hear of events which are neither very
old nor quite new ? Is it because we discredit events which
occurred long before our time and take no pleasure in 15
events which we discredit, while we can still as it were
perceive very recent events and so take no pleasure in
hearing about them ?

gi7 b

BOOK XIX

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH MUSIC

WHY do those who are grieving ] and those who are I
enjoying themselves alike have the flute played to them ?
20 Is it in order that the distress of the former may be lessened
and the pleasure of the latter increased ?

Why is it that, when the same person uses the same vocal 2
power, the sound travels farther when he is singing or
shouting with others than when he does so by himself? 2
Is it because the doing of anything with a number of other
people compressing, for instance, or pushing something
does not produce an effect in simple proportion to the
25 number of persons ; but, just as a line two feet long
describes a circle 3 which is not double but quadruple that
described by a line a foot long, so collective actions have
greater force in proportion to their number than when they
are carried out separately ? 4 When, therefore, a number of
persons sing together, the force of their voice unites, and
impels the air simultaneously, so that it travels many times
as far ; for the voice produced by all is the multiple of each
single voice.

30 Why does the voice waver most when singing parhypate 5 3
and to no less a degree than when singing nete and the
higher notes, although the interval is greater ? Is it because

1 The reference is to the use of the flute at funerals.

2 Cp. xi. 52.

3 Vollgraff is no doubt right in thus interpreting ypdcbeiv in its usual
sense in geometry.

4 i.e. multiplication takes place and not mere addition.

5 The following is the usual scheme employed by Peripatetic writers
(see Jan, Musici Scriptores, p. 81) :

hypate parhypate lichanos mese paramese trite paranete nete
e f a a be d e .

There seems no reason why, in a diatonic scale, parhypate should be
specially difficult to sing. Bojesen and Sturnpf therefore suppose that
the reference is to an enharmonic scale, in which the interval from
hypate to parhypate is a quarter-tone, which would actually be hard to
take.

BOOK XIX. 3

the interval ] is more difficult to sing and is a primary
element ? 2 Now the difficulty is due to the straining and
pressure of the voice ; and these require an effort, and
things which require an effort are more likely to fail.

4 But why \sparhypate difficult to sing, but hypate easy, 35
although there is only a quarter-tone between them ? 3 Is it
because hypate is accompanied by relaxation of the voice
and also because after tension it is easy to slacken ? 4 It is
probably for the same reason that what a man says with
violence, 5 he says with this note or paranete? [For one
must . . . with a consciousness of the character which one is
representing and under conditions most akin to it according
to one s purpose.] 7 [But what is the first condition o
concordant music ?] 8

5 Why do men take greater pleasure in listening to those
who are singing such music as they already know than
music which they do not know ? 9 Is it because, when they
recognize what is being sung, it is more obvious that the 5
singer is as it were achieving 10 his aims, and this is pleasant
to contemplate? Or is it because it is less 11 pleasant to
learn ? And the reason of this is that in the one case there
is acquisition of knowledge, in the other the use and recog
nition of it. Further, that which is familiar is always
pleasanter than the unfamiliar.

5 Why does recitation with a musical accompaniment have 10
a tragic effect when introduced into singing ? Is it owing

1 Stumpf has been followed here in taking ravrrjv and our/? to refer
to the quarter-tone.

2 i. e. the quarter-tone is the smallest interval in the musical scale.

3 The meaning seems to be : Why is it easier to sing the same
interval downwards than upwards ?

4 Reading with Jan n^a^aXai/ for ai>a> /SuXXai/.

6 Reading with Bussemaker and Stumpf ftiav for \u.nv. The inter
pretation here adopted is that of Stumpf.

6 We should, with Stumpf, expect paramese rather than paranete
here.

7 This sentence (which is incomplete, since there is no infinitive
after Set) appears to be out of place here.

8 This sentence appears to be the statement of another problem,
the solution of which is lacking.

9 Cp. below, chapter 40. lo Omitting 6 ; cp. a 24.
11 Reading with Richards ?? 6Vt

O 2

gi8 a PROBLEMATA

to the resulting contrast ? For the contrast gives an ex
pression of feeling and implies extremity of calamity or
grief, whereas uniformity is less mournful.

Why did the ancients, when they gave the scale seven 7
notes, leave in hypate and not nete ? T Is this a false state-
15 ment, since they left in both and omitted trite, or is the truer
answer that the lower note contains the sound of the higher
note, 2 so that hypate gives the impression of the octave
above better than (nete for the high note needs 3 more
force, while the low note is easier to utter) ?

Why does the low note 4 contain 5 the sound of the high 8
20 note ? G Is it because the low note is greater and resembles an
obtuse angle, while the high note resembles an acute angle ? 7

Why do we listen with greater pleasure to a solo when a 9
man sings it to the accompaniment of a flute or lyre ? 8 Yet
the same tune is sung note for note 9 with or without

1 Cp. below, chapter 47. For the scheme of eight notes used by
the Peripatetic writers, see note on 9i7 b 30. Two stages can be traced
in the earlier evolution of the seven-stringed lyre (see Jan, op. cit., p. 81).

(a) The earliest form was :

paramese

hypate parhypate lichanos mese or trite paranete nete
e f gad c d

(b] After the time of Terpander trite (= 6) was omitted (cp. below,
920 a 15-17), and nete was made equivalent to e :

paramese
hypate parhypate lichanos mese or trite paranete nete

e f g a c d e 1

The Peripatetic, being familiar with the eight-note scale which was
evolved from the seven-note scale, inverts the order in which the two
systems came into being. The question arises why nete ( = e } was
omitted as in system (a) above. The answer, having system (b) in
mind, asks whether it is not a truer statement of the case to say that
nete (= d ) was retained and trite (= b) rejected.

2 The phrase iVxuei TOV TTJS o^vrepas (f)66yyov gives no meaning since
lo-xvci is a neuter verb and cannot govern an accusative. If it is
retained, we must read something like iV^uei {rrXeoi ) TOV Trjs o^vrepas
(j)66yyov. A better alternative is to read to-^fi, with Eichtal and
Reinach (Rev. t. Grec. v. (1892) p. 33), who compare 9i8 a 40 i) 6Vt TO
/3apu fjicyci eartf, ware Kparepof j KOI fve(mv fv r< /zeyiiAa) TO fjuxpov.

3 Some verb must be supplied to complete the sense : eVei (Stlrm)
TO ot< Sum/Liecos (Wagener) is more probable than the insertion of
o-ij/Lieloi/ by the Teubner editors. eWi . . . ffrOty^aa-Ocu seems, however,
quite irrelevant here. 4 i. e. hypate.

5 Reading TX, as above, for to^uei. 6 i. e. nete.

7 Cp. de. An. 42O b I ff. 8 Cp. below, chapter 43.

9 Reading Trpoo-^opSa (Jan) ; cp. Plato, Laws, xii. 812 D.

BOOK XIX. 9 gi8 s

accompaniment. This creates a problem, for if it gave more
delight to hear more of the same thing, 1 we ought to sing to
the accompaniment of a large number of flute-players and this 25
ought to be even more pleasant. Is it because the singer is
more obviously achieving his aim when he is accompanied
y a flute or lyre ? And the accompaniment of a number
of flute-players or lyres does not add to the pleasure,
because it drowns the singing.

10 Why, if the human voice is more pleasant than an instru
ment, 2 is the voice of a man singing without words as, for 3
example, when making meaningless warblings 3 not so
pleasant as a flute or lyre ? Or is it true that even in
the case of an instrument we get less pleasure if it is not
expressive of meaning ? The instrument, however, has an
advantage even in its actual effect ; for while the human voice
is pleasanter, instruments strike the note better than the
human mouth, wherefore they are pleasanter to hear than
meaningless warblings.

11 Why is the voice higher when it echoes back ? 4 Is it 35
because it is smaller, 5 having become weaker ?

12 Why does the lower of two strings sounded together
always give the tune ? For if one omits paranete, when
one should sound it w r ith mese, the tune is given none the
less ; but if one omits mese, when one should sound both,
the tune is lost. 7 Is it because the low note is large and 4
therefore strong, and the less is contained in the greater ? 8
So too if hypate is stopped down in the centre, 1 two netes
are produced.

1 Reading fl yap erepTTf (Jtin) /jLii\\ov TO avro TrXeop (Jov , e Sei KT\.

2 Putting a comma after (pwvr) instead of after qftovros.

3 For the meaning ofrepcTifav see An. Post. 83 a 33.

4 For djrr]Xfiv cp. 899*24. 6 Reading with Vollgraff fXarrwi/.

6 Cp. above xi. 6 and 20. Lord Rayleigh (Theory of Sound, ii.
p. 152) notes that echoes returned from such reflecting bodies as a
group of trees are sometimes raised an octave.

7 Reading av yap edarrj Tf]v irapavfjTrjv, dfov crufix/ rJXm rfj ^077, yivtrat
TO fJLfXos ov&i> r/TToj/* fciv dt Tr)V p-earjif, de ov (lp.<p(t) \}sr]\ai ov yiverai* This

is the reading of Monro, except that he reads napapeo-^v, for which
Fetis and Gevaert read Trapavrjrrjv. The Teubner editors wrongly
report Monro as reading \lri\d.

8 Cp. 9i8 a 2o.

9 i. e. by striking the string on either side of the central point. The

gi8 b PROBLEMATA

Why is it that the low note in the octave gives the effect 13
of unison with the high, but not vice versa ? l Is it because,
5 if possible, the sound of both notes is in both notes, but,
failing that, in the low note, since it is greater ?

Why does the accord in the octave escape notice, and 14
why does there appear to be a simple unison, as for example
in the Phoenician lyre and in the human voice ? 2 For the
upper and lower notes :! do not give the same sound but are
analogous 4 to one another at the octave. Is it because their
10 sound appears to be practically the same owing to the
analogy, and analogy is equality in sounds, and equality is
of the one ? 5 The same deception occurs also in the pipes.

Why were nomes not composed in antistrophes like 15
all other songs, that is, choric songs ? Is it because the
nomes were assigned to virtuosi, and as these were

15 already able to imitate different characters and sustain their
parts, the songs composed for them became long and elabo
rate ? Like the words, therefore, the music conformed to
the imitation, becoming constantly different ; for it was more
essential for the music to be imitative than the words. 6 (For
this reason too dithyrambs, since they have become imita
tive, no longer have antistrophes, as they had formerly.) The

20 reason is that in the old days free citizens themselves formed
the choruses ; it was difficult, therefore, for a large number

fact that hypate can be made to produce two netes is a proof that the
less is contained in the greater.

1 i. e. a note contains as a harmonic or upper partial the note an
octave higher than itself, whereas it does not contain the note an
octave lower than itself. Our author seems to have had some know
ledge of undertones , i. e. harmonics which work downwards instead
of upwards, so far as the octave is concerned.

2 e. g. a man and a boy, when they think they are singing the same
tune, are really singing an octave apart.

3 Reading with Eichtal and Reinach eV rots o(eW KO.\ TO LS lBap}eaiv
OVTCI. 4 Reading d^a Adyof.

6 Reading diet TO avaKoyov, (jo ^e aviiKoyov} tcroTT/? eVi (ftBoyyaV) TO St
icrov TOV (v<>s. This is clearly the text rendered by T. G., who translates
an modus proportionis facit ut sonus quasi idem esse appareat ? pro-
portio enim in sonis aequalitas est, aequale autem omne ad unitatem
referendum est .

This is certainly true of the only nome of which the words have
come down to us, the Per sue of Timotheus, which resembles the
meaningless libretto of an inferior opera and must have depended for
its effect on the music and the mimetic powers of the performer.

BOOK XIX. 15 gig 1

to sing together like virtuosi, so they sang in one mode. 1
For it is easier for a single person to make many changes
than for a large chorus, and for a professional than for
those who are preserving the character of the music. And
so they made the music more simple for them. Now the
antistrophic song is simple ; for there is one rhythm 2 and 25
one unit of metre. For the same reason songs executed
from the stage are not antistrophic, but those sung by the
chorus are so ; for the actor is a virtuoso and an imitator,
but the chorus is less imitative.

16 Why is antiphonal 3 accompaniment 4 more pleasing 3 o
than 4 symphonic accompaniment ? 5 Is it because in the
former the consonance is more obvious than w r hen the
accompaniment of the singing is 4 symphonic ? For of
the two notes played by the instrument one must be in
unison with the note sung*, and so two notes contending
against one drown the other note.

17 Why is it that singing in fifths 7 does not give the effect
of antiphony ? 8 Is it because one * symphonic note is

Y a , fv fytpovia C a X a AP. Chabanon s conjecture ev pia
has been adopted ; the corruption can be explained by suppos
ing that fjLia was written a.

2 Reading with Jan els pvO^os. The MS. reading api6fj.us can be
explained as a misunderstanding of (= els) pvdpos.

3 dvTitfxavos can be applied in general to any reproduction of a tune
in a different part of the scale ; but it is frequently used in these
problems in the technical sense of the accord in the octave, the only
interval in the view of the Greeks which could be used consecutively in
singing, o-vp-fpuvos is used either (i) of any consonance (cp. the use
of (TufjLcfcwvelv in 1. 31, and 17 Sin iraa-wv avfj,cp<ovia (\, 40), and chapter 39,
where TO vvpfytovov includes all consonances), (2) in the technical sense
as applied to musical accompaniment when two notes are played by
an instrument, one of which is the same as that of the voice (6//d<jWoy),
the other consonant with the voice, i.e. a fourth or a fifth higher.
6p.o(p(0via (= unison) occurs when two identical notes are used simul
taneously.

4 That harmonized musical accompaniment is here intended is
shown by the words of 11. 31-2 orav irpbs crvpcptoviav udrj (cp. D. B.
Monro, /. of P. I, pt. ii, pp. 87-8).

5 Cp. chapters 35 and 39.

6 i. e. one of the notes played on the instrument is identical with
that uttered by the singer ; these two notes drown the third note,
i. e. the second note played on the instrument.

7 T. G. appears to render 6i nevre \KUL 8ia rfa-o-apco^.

8 Antiphonal is here used in its wider sense of reproducing the
same tune in a different part of the scale.

gi8 b PROBLEMATA

35 not the same as the other symphonic note, 1 as are the
notes which are an octave apart ? For in the accord 2 in
the octave the deep note in the lower part of the scale is
analogous to the high note in the upper part ; it is, there
fore, as it were at once the same and different. But this
does not occur in fifths and fourths, so that the sound
of the antiphonal note does not appear, for it is not
identical.

40 Why is it that the accord in the octave alone is used in 18
gi9 a singing ? 3 For in * magadizing 4 this and no other accord
is used. Is it because it alone is made up of ( antiphonal
notes, and with antiphonal notes, if but one be sung, the
same effect is produced as if both were sung ? For the one
note in a way contains the sounds of both, so that, when one
5 is sung, the concordant note 5 at this interval is also sung ;
and when they sing both, or when one note is sung and
the other played on the flute, they both as it were sing one
note. Therefore the accord in the octave alone is sung,
because the * antiphonal notes have the sound of one note.

But why does the power of producing the effect of a single 19
10 note belong only to antiphonal notes ? Is it because they
alone are equidistant from mese! 1 The presence then of
this mean creates a certain similarity in their sounds, and
the ear seems to tell us that it is the same note and that
they are both extremes.

Why is it that, if, after tuning the other strings, one alters 2O
mese and uses the instrument, the ear is offended and an
15 unmusical effect is produced not only when mese is used,

1 Reading with Jan f) o-vfji(pu>vos 777

2 Reading eW with Vollgraff for e /ceiVr?. The meaning clearly is that
there is the same succession of corresponding notes in the scale as sung
by a man s voice and by a boy s.

3 Cp. below, chapter 39 b .

4 The pdyabts was a large stringed instrument containing at least
two octaves (Athenaeus, xiv. 36; Anacreon, fr. 18 ; Xen. Anab. vii.
3. 32) ; hence ftayndi^eiv comes to mean the singing of a succession of
notes by different voices in octaves.

5 Reading with Jan rj avptytovos for f) tru/u^coi/ia.

6 Punctuating Kai /u<<o qdovres, 77 rr)S pev qdofjievrjs, rrjs Se nv\ovfj.vr}s t
&(nrep KT\.

7 This is untrue, and the whole problem is singularly inept and clearly
inserted by a writer who knew nothing of music.

BOOK XIX. 20 919

but in the rest of the piece as well, whereas, if lichanos or
any other string is altered, it only seems to make a difference
when that particular string 1 is used ? T Surely this is only
natural ; for in all good music mese occurs frequently, and
all good composers have frequent recourse to mese, and, if 20
they leave it, they soon return to it, as they do to no other
note. Similarly in language, if certain connecting particles
are removed, such as re and /ecu, the language is no longer
Greek ; whereas the omission of some particles does not
offend the ear, because certain particles must be frequently 25
used, if there is to be language, but others not. So mese
is as it were a conjunction among sounds, and more so than
the other 2 notes, because its sound occurs more often.

21 Why is it that of singers those who are singing low notes
are more conspicuous if they sing out of tune than those 3
who are singing high ? So too those who make mistakes
in time in the lower notes 3 are more conspicuous. Is it
because the period of time occupied by the low note is
longer, and this longer period is more perceptible (for, 4
lasting for a greater time, it creates a deeper sense -
impression), whereas a quick," high note escapes notice 35
owing to its swiftness ?

22 Why does a large choir keep better time than a small
one ? G Is it because they look more to one man, their leader,
and dance 7 more slowly and so more easily achieve unity ?
For mistakes occur more frequently in quick singing.

23 Why is hypate double nete ? 8 Is it because in the first
place, when half the string is struck and when the whole

1 Cp. below, chapter 36.

2 Reading with Ruelle and Stumpf aXXi> for /caXcor^. /zaXiora TWV
Ka\S>v (jUfXoo^) is, however, possible : * particularly in good music , cp.
above, 1. 19.

3 Reading with the MSS. /3npurep&>. The generally accepted emenda
tion /3pa<Wep spoils the sense; the question of duration being
introduced in the solution.

4 Omitting r\ before on with Reinach and Eichthal, and punctuating
a.i(rdr]TQS, on.

6 Reading ra^ with the MSS. 6 Cp. below, chapter 45.

7 Reading ( p^oiWai with Graf.

8 Reading with Wagener and Jan rfjs VTJTI^S jj vnaTrj. The solution

iO

9iQ b PROBLEMATA

string is struck an accord in the octave is produced ? So
too with wind instruments, 1 the sound produced through
the middle hole and that produced through the whole flute
5 give an accord in the octave. Again, in the reed-pipe an
accord in the octave is obtained by doubling the length,
and this is how flute-makers produce it. Similarly they
obtain a fifth by means of a length in the ratio of 3 to 2. 2
Again, those who construct Pan-pipes stuff wax into the
extreme end of the Ayjpate-reed, but fill up the nete-reed
to the middle. Similarly they obtain a fifth by means of
a length in the ratio of 3 to 2, and a fourth by means
of a length in the ratio of 4 to 3. Further, hypate and
nete* on triangular stringed instruments, when they are
equally stretched, give an accord in the octave when one is
double the other in length.

Why, if one strikes nete* and then stops it down, does 24
hypate alone seem to resound ? 5 Is it because the vibration
produced from hypate is very much of the same nature as
the sound of nete, because it is in accord with it ? When it
is increased by the addition of its like, it alone is audible,
the other sounds being imperceptible owing to their small-
ness.

Why is mese ( the middle note ) so called in the scale, 25
though there is no middle of eight notes ? 6 Is it because
in the old days scales had seven notes, 7 and seven has
a middle ?

shows that hypate is double nete in length of string. In 92O a 29, where
nete is said to be double hypate, the reference is to frequency of pitch.

1 TMV a-vplyywv is here used generally of wind instruments, of which
particular examples are given, (i) the single flute (crvpiyt;), (2) the
reed-pipe (<w\6s), and (3) the Pan-pipes (crvptyyes).

2 Deleting the square brackets inserted in the Teubner text and
putting a full-stop after ^/uioXfw. There is no reason why the method
of producing a fifth should not be mentioned here as well as in 1. 10,
since it is a question of a different instrument.

3 Reading with Bojesen ul for ot or of the MSS.

4 Deleting the second vf^rrjv.

5 Cp. below, chapter 42. As a matter of fact the striking of hypate
would set up a sympathetic vibration in nete to a much greater extent
than vice versa.

c A longer version of this problem occurs at chapter 44. For the
usual scheme of eight notes used by the Peripatetic writers see note
on 9i7 b 3o.

7 See note on 918* 14.

BOOK XIX. 26 gi 9 b

26 Why do most men sing high when they sing- out of
tune ? 1 Is it because it is easier to sing high than low ?
Or is it because singing high is worse than singing low, 2
and a mistake is doing what is worse ? 25

27 Why is it that of all things which are perceived by the
senses that which is heard alone possesses moral character ? 3
For music, even if it is unaccompanied by words, yet has
character ; whereas a colour and an odour and a savour
have not. Is it because that which is heard alone has
movement, not, however, 4 the movement in us to which the
sound gives rise (for such movement exists also in the other 3
things which affect our senses, for colour also moves our
sight), but we perceive the movement which follows such
and such a sound ? This movement resembles moral
character both in the rhythms and in the melodic dis
position of the high and low notes, but not in their
commingling ; for symphony does possess moral character.
This does not occur in the other objects of sense-perception. 35
Now these movements are connected with action, and
actions are indicative of moral character.

28 Why are the nomes (Vo/iot) which are sung so called ?
Is it because before men knew the art of writing they used
to sing their laws (vo^ai) in order not to forget them, as
they are still accustomed to do among the Agathyrsi ? 5 9 2 a
They, therefore, called the earliest of their subsequent songs

by the same name as their earliest songs.

29 Why do rhythms and tunes, which after all are only voice,
resemble moral characters, whereas savours do not, nor yet
colours and odours ? f) Is it because they are movements, 5
as actions also are ? Now efficient action is already moral
and determines character, but savours and colours have no
similar effect.

1 Cp. below, chapter 46.

2 Cp. 92o a 23, where a low note is said to be more noble than a high.
8 Cp. below, chapter 29.

4 Punctuating with most editors p.( n>ov } oi^l rjv.

5 A Scythian tribe (Herod, iv. ico). 6 Cp. chapter 27.

9 20 a PROBLEMATA

Why is neither the Hypodorian nor the Hypophrygian 30
mode suitable for use by the chorus in tragedy ? l Is it
because they do not admit of antistrophic melody ? 2 They
^ are used, however, from the stage, because they are imita
tive. 3

Why were Phrynichus and his contemporaries primarily 31
musicians ? Is it because in those days the lyrical portions
of tragedies were many times longer than the purely
metrical ? 4

Why is the diapason (accord in the octave) so called 3 2
and not named after the number of notes a diocto , like
15 the diatessaron (fourth) and the * diapente (fifth) ? Is it
because the notes were originally seven in number, 5 and
then Terpander took away trite and added nete, and in his
time it was called diapason and not diocto , since it was
really diepta ?

Why is it more satisfactory for a singer to pass from 33
a high to a low note than from a low to a high note ? Is it
20 because the former amounts to beginning at the beginning,
for the mese, or leader, 6 is the highest note in the tetra-
chord ? But in passing from a low to a high note one
begins not at the beginning but at the end. Or is it because
a low note is nobler and more euphonious after a high
note ?

Why are a double fifth 7 and a double fourth not con- 34
25 cordant, whereas a double octave is ? 8 Is it because

1 The same problem is treated at greater length in chapter 48.

2 Gevaert explains as follows : Elles se pretaient mal a la me lodie
absolue, exprimant un etat d ame permanent. Elles s appliquaient
uniquement aux chants sceniques ou semi-sceniques coupes en sections
libres ; elles affectionnaient en consequence la melopee declame e,
visant a une expression precise.

3 Reading with Wagener /Lu/*??r(Ka. For the meaning of the term
cp. o.22 b 17-27.

4 i. e. the choruses were still the principal element (as in Aeschylus
earliest play, the Supplices), and the actor who spoke and did not sing
his lines took only a minor part.

5 See note on 918* 14.

6 Omitting the KOL inserted by Ruelle after i^ye/nwj/.

7 5i oeio>i> is the Pythagorean name for a fifth (cp. Nicomachus,
ch. 9 in Jan s Mus. Script,, p. 252).

8 This problem is more fully and clearly treated in chapter 41.

BOOK XIX. 34 92o a

neither a double fifth nor a double fourth is in a super-
particular ratio, 1 though a fourth and a fifth are so ? 2

35 a Why is the accord in the octave the most beautiful of all ?
Is it because its ratios are contained within integral terms, 3
while those of the others are not so contained ? For since
nete is double hypate,^ as nete is two, so hypate is one ; and 30
as hypate is two, nete is four ; and so on. But nete is to
mese in the ratio of f to i (for a fifth is in this ratio), and
that which is in the ratio of | to i r> is not contained within
integral terms; for as the lesser number is one, so 6 the
greater number is one with the addition of a half, so that it
is no longer a comparison of whole numbers, but fractions
are left over. The like happens also with the fourth ; for 35
the epitrite 7 of a term is as great as that term 8 and one
third as great again. Or is it because the accord which is
made up of both the other two 9 is the most perfect, and
because it is the measure 10 of the melody ? u

35 b Why (is the sound shrillest in the middle of the note ?
Is it because) 12 in any body which is displaced the move-

1 This sentence is obviously incomplete in the MSS. and for the
above translation Jan s suggestion 8\s 5ta rerrapcoy (eVt/xopiof) fcmv has
been read ; cp. 92i b 5. The meaning of empopiov (c^.Met. A. io2i a 2)

is that which is - of something else ; but the author seems to

confine his attention to values of n not greater than 3, since only
octaves, fourths, and fifths are considered.

2 A fifth being in the ratio of 3 to 2 and a fourth in the ratio of 4 to 3,

is 2- ( = ^^-} to I, and a double fourth (= ^iZ

a double fifth

to i.

5 Unity is always taken as the second term of the ratio ; the
author s idea is that for a consonance the first term must either be an

integer, as in the octave, or of the form - - (ciri/uopioi ), as in the

fourth and fifth.

See note on 919* I.

Reading TO -yap Sia irevre {^puoXtoi/, TO ) rjfiloXiov.

Reading with Bekker and Bojesen TOO-OVTOV re K.ai.

i. e. that which is in the ratio of $ to I.

Reading with Bussemaker and Bekker oo-ov r eKtlvo KCU.

i. e. the accord in the octave.

10 i. e. the melody keeps within the compass of the octave.

11 Putting a question mark after peXwdias, where the problem
evidently ends, as it does in Gaza s version.

12 It has been generally recognized that the latter portion of this

92o a PROBLEM AT A

ment is most violent in the middle and quieter at the

g2O b beginning- and end, and when the movement is most violent

the sound of that which is displaced is shriller ? For this

reason also strings which are tightly stretched give a shriller

note, for their movement is quicker. 1 Now if a sound is the

displacement of air or of something else, 2 a sound which is

5 in the middle of its course must be shrillest. If this \vere

not so, there would be no displacement of anything.

Why is it that if mese is altered, the sound of the other 36
strings also is spoilt, 3 but if on the other hand mese is left
alone and one of the other strings altered, the note which
10 is altered 4 alone is spoilt? 5 Is it because for all strings
being in tune means standing in a certain relation to
and the tension 7 of each is already determined by
? If, therefore, that which is the cause of their being
in tune and which holds them together is taken away, their
proper relationship appears to be no longer maintained.
But if one string is out of tune but mese is not altered,
15 naturally the defect lies in that string only ; 8 for all the
others are in tune.

Why is it that, though height in a voice is in accordance 37
with smallness and lowness in accordance with largeness
(for a low note is slow owing to its largeness, and a high
note quick owing to its smallness), yet more effort is required
to sing a high than a low note, and few can sing the top
20 notes, and the * Orthian songs 9 and high music are hard to
sing owing to the strain which they involve ? Yet it requires
less effort to set in motion that which is small than that which
is large, and this ought to be true also of the air. Is it

chapter belongs to another problem. Reinach and Eichtal s sug
gested statement of the problem has been adopted in the translation :
diet (ji f) $>wvr) ava pevov o|vrar7/ ; rj on) navrbs KT\.

1 Cp. 899* 13. 2 Placing a comma after $opa.

3 Reading with Stark (fr0eip6fj.evat.

4 Reading with Sylburg {/)} KivrjOelo-a.

5 Reading with Stark (frdeipcrat. The problem is the same as that
of chapter 20.

6 Omitting the comma after the first dnda-ais and Se after TO, and
deleting the second dTrda-ais.

7 Reading rdaris for rafts- (so also Ruelle).

8 Reading eVcXein-et p.6vov with Bojesen.

9 Reading of VOJJLOI (ot) 8p6ioi. Orthian songs were of a stirring,
martial kind.

BOOK XIX. 37 9 2o b

because the possession l of a naturally high voice and the
singing of high notes are not the same thing, but naturally
high voices are always due to weakness because of the
inability to set more than a little air in motion, and the little
air thus set in motion is carried quickly along? But height 25
of note in singing is a sign of strength ; for that which is
carried violently along is carried swiftly. 2 Hence persons
in robust health 3 can sing high. And it requires an
effort to sing the high notes, but the low notes are easier. 4

38 Why do all men delight in rhythm and melody and
concords in general ? Is it because we naturally rejoice
in natural movements ? 5 This is shown by the fact that 30
children rejoice in them as soon as they are born. Now
we delight in the various types of melody for their moral
character/ but we delight in rhythm because it contains
a familiar and ordered number and moves in a regular
manner ; for ordered movement is naturally more akin to
us than disordered, and is therefore more in accordance 35
with nature. This is shown by the fact that by working
and eating and drinking in an ordered manner we preserve
and improve our nature and strength, whereas if we do
these things irregularly we destroy and derange our nature ;
for diseases are disturbances of the natural order 7 of the g2I a
body. Thirdly, we delight in concord because it is the
mingling of contraries which stand in proportion to one
another. Proportion, then, is order, which, as we have
said, 8 is naturally pleasant. Now that which is mingled
is always more pleasant than that which is unmingled,
especially if, being perceived by the senses, it contains
equally the force of both extremes ; and in a concord the 5
proportion has this characteristic. 9

1 Reading (r6> ov<f)a>vov.

2 Omitting <5i6 TO oii Swdpfus a-^^elov as a repetition from the
preceding line.

8 Reading CVCKTIKOI (W. D. R.).

4 KUTCO is clearly due to a gloss on TCI jSnpe n and has displaced another
word. For the above translation paov (Jan) has been read.

5 Cp. Pol. viii. 1340*3, 4.

6 Reading TI&OS with most editors.

7 Omitting ou with most editors. 8 92o b 33, 34.

9 Reading dvvap.iv (ex??* TOVTO 8 1 ) fx fi (W. D. R.).

92i a PROBLEMATA

Why is c antiphony l more pleasant than * homophony ? 39
Is it because 2 antiphony is concord in the octave ? For
antiphony is produced by young boys 3 and men whose

10 voices are separated in pitch as nete is from hypate. Now
any concord is more pleasing than a simple note for the
reasons already stated, 4 and of concords that in the octave
is the most pleasing ; whereas homophony produces only
a simple sound. Magadizing fl is in the concord of the
octave, because, just as in verses the syllables stand to one

15 another in the proportion of equal to equal, or two to one,
or some other proportion, so too the sounds in a concord
stand in a proportion of movement to one another. In the
other concords the termination of one of the two notes is
incomplete since it coincides with the end of only a half of
the other ; and so they are not equal in force, 7 and being
unequal they make a different impression 8 on the sense-

20 perception, as happens in a chorus 9 when at the conclusion
some are singing louder than others. 10 Furthermore, hypate
happens to have the same conclusions to the periods in its
sounds as nete^ for the second stroke which nete makes
upon the air is hypate. As, then, these notes, though

35 they do not do the same thing, terminate together, the
result is that they carry out one common task, like those
who are playing a stringed accompaniment to a song ; for

1 Reading avricfxovov with Bojesen and most editors, following T. G. s
version. For the meaning of the terms Antiphony and Homophony
see note on 91 8 b 30. 2 Reading 77 (on) with most editors.

3 Omitting Kai inserted in the Teubner text before vcwv.

4 i. e. in chapter 38.

5 See note on 9i9 a i. Some editors, following T. G., hold that a
new problem begins at this point and read (Sta n } fj.ayai(ovan.v eV rrj
dia Traa-tov Grv^wvia ; f) (6Vt) KT\. The rest of the chapter, however,
seems to follow naturally on the remarks about the superiority of the
concord in the octave.

6 i. e. in the fifth, the length of the two notes being as 3:2, the
slower terminates when one and a half beats of the faster have taken
place; in the fourth, the length of the two notes being as 4:3, the
second beat of the faster terminates when one and a half beats of the
slower have taken place.

7 Placing a comma instead of a full-stop after ei<nV.

8 Reading didcfropoi with Reinach and Eichtal.

9 Deleting the comma after ^opol?.

10 Reading aXXcov (aAAo>i>) (bdeyyo^vutv or oAAou (a AAooy) <j)deyyop.vois
(W. D. R.).

11 Reading a-v^aivei (rfj vearfl) rrjv avrrjv from T. G. s version.

BOOK XIX. 39 9 2i a

these, though they do not play the same other notes as the
singer, yet, if they finish on the same note, give more
pleasure by their conclusion than they give pain by the
differences which occur earlier in the piece, because after
diversity the unity clue to the accord in the octave is very
pleasing. 1 Now magadizing is made up of contrary notes, 2
and for this reason it is carried out in the accord in the 3
octave.

40 Why do men take greater pleasure in listening to those
who are singing tunes which they already know than if
they do not know them ? > Is it because it is more obvious
that the singer is as it were achieving his aim when they
recognize what is being sung, and when they recognize it 35
the contemplation of it is pleasant ? Or is it because the
listener is in sympathy with one who sings what he himself
knows ? For he sings with him ; and every one enjoys
singing when he is under no compulsion to sing.

4 1 Why are a double fifth 4 and a double fourth not concor- g2i b
dant, whereas a double octave is? 5 Is it because a fifth is

in the ratio of 3 to 2, and a fourth in that of 4 to 3 ? Now
in a series of three numbers in a ratio of 3 to 2 7 or 4 to 3,
the two extreme numbers will have no ratio to one another; 5
for neither will they be in a superparticular ratio s nor will
one be a multiple of the other. But, since the octave is in
a ratio of 2 to i, } if it be doubled the extreme numbers
would be in a fourfold ratio. So, since a concord is a
compound of sounds which are in a proper ratio 10 to one
another, and sounds which are at an interval of two octaves J0
from one another are in a ratio to one another (while
double fourths and double fifths are not), the sounds con-

1 Reading T fK diaffiopwv TO KOIVOV fj^icrrov KrX.

2 i. e. high and low.

3 Cp. above, chapter 5.

4 For df o^eiwv see note on 920* 24.

5 This chapter is a longer version of chapter 34.

6 Reading with the MSS. rpivv.

7 This phrase clearly means a series consisting of?/, n x f , n x (f) 2 .

8 For the meaning of eVi/zopios see note on 92o a 26.

9 Putting a comma instead of a full-stop after Xo-yw.

10 Reading euAoycos- with Stumpf ; cp. rtfc Sensu, 439 h 3i fif.

92i b PROBLEMATA

stituting the double octave would give a concord (while the
others would not) for the reasons given above.

Why is it that, if one strikes nete and then stops it 4 2

15 down, hypate seems to respond ? l Is it because nete, as it
ceases and dies down, becomes hypate} (This can be
illustrated by the fact that it is possible to sing nete from
hypate ; for the similarity can be taken from hypate as being
a response to nete?} And since an echo is a response to
a note 3 , and when nete ceases a sound 4 is set in motion

20 which is the same as the note of hypate, it is only natural
owing to the similarity that nete should seem to set hypate
in motion. For we know that nete is not 5 in motion,
because it is stopped down, and seeing that hypate itself is
not stopped down and hearing its note we think that it
is hypate which is giving forth a sound. (This kind of

2 5 illusion is quite common, where we cannot perceive the
exact truth either by reasoning or by the senses.) Again,
it would be nothing extraordinary if, after nete is struck
when it is very tightly stretched, the bridge were set in
motion ; and it would not be strange if, when the bridge
moved, all the strings were set in motion with it and made

3 a sound. Now the sound of nete is alien to the other notes
both in its end and in its beginning, but is the same as
hypate in its end. This having been added to the move
ment of hypate itself, it would not be strange that the
sound should seem to be entirely that of hypate ; and it
will be louder than the combined sound of the other notes,
because the latter, being as it were impelled by nete,

35 give only a soft sound, whereas nete, being the most violent
of notes, sounds with its full force ; and so naturally its
second sound would be louder than that of the others,
especially if only a slight movement has taken place in them. 7

1 Cp. chapter 24.

2 Reading u>s yap OUCTTJS a^rtuSJ}? ^T^y) vfaTrjs (W. D. R.).

3 Reading eVet 8e Km rjx^ 3 uvTto&rj ris eVrt [a<pr) icrriv\ 0cov^?, KOI rrjs
vedrrjs ^rj-yoixrrjs r)X s (W- D. R.).

4 Reading /ai/cmu for Kivel with Vollgraff.

5 Reading with Jan to-pev (on) ou.

6 Cp. 92i a 23.

7 Reading with Sylburg aXXtos re KOI /Spa^ei a? Kivrjcreoes avrals

T. G. clearly renders aXXcay re Km.

BOOK XIX. 43 922*

43 Why do we listen 1 with greater pleasure to a solo sung Q22 a
to a flute than to one sung to a lyre ? 2 Is it because
anything becomes still more pleasant when mingled with
what is more pleasant ? 3 Now the flute is more pleasant
than the lyre, so that singing would be more pleasant when

it mingles with the flute than with the lyre. Further, 4 that
which is mingled is more pleasant than that which is un-
mingled, if there is a simultaneous perception of both the 5
elements. For wine is pleasanter than oxymel \ 5 because
natural mixtures are more thoroughly mingled than those
which we make ourselves. For there is also wine which is
mingled of bitter and sweet savours, as is shown by the
so-called vinous pomegranates. Singing, then, and the
flute mingle w T ith one another owing to their similarity, 10
for they are both produced by breath. But the sound of
the lyre, since it is not produced by breath (which is what
makes the sound of the flute less noticeable), 6 mingles less
well with the voice and, causing a contrast in the percep
tion, has a less sweetening effect, as has been said of savours.
Furthermore, the flute by its own sound and by its likeness
to the voice covers up many of the mistakes of the singer; 15
but the sounds of the lyre, which are isolated and mingle
less well with the voice, since they are themselves observed,
and exist, on their own account, 7 show up the mistakes of
the singing as well, providing as it were a standard for
criticizing it. And when there are many mistakes in the
singing, the combined effect of the singing and the accom- 20
paniment must necessarily be worse.

44 Why is mese* ( the middle note ) so called, though
there is no middle of eight notes ? <J Is it because in the

1 Reading with X a novwftias aKovo^v eav /crX.

2 The sense of the solution requires rj (e ai> rrpos) \vpuv. This is not
the same problem as that of chapter 9, although in the MSS. the
questions are identical.

3 Reading TTO.V ro> ydiovi fj.i%6ev fjdiov en eVnV.

4 Putting a full-stop after efy and reading with Bojesen en for eVei.

5 An artificial drink made of honey and vinegar.

6 So that it mingles better with the voice. Reading ?J (Egger for ?})
rJTTOv ai(rOr)Tui> 6 T&>V avX&v. 7 Reading avrot (W. D. R.) for avTOis.

8 Omitting TWV p.i> OKTU> : the MSS. have TWV /xeV eVra, which gives
just the wrong sense and is due to a false gloss.

9 This problem is a longer version of chapter 25.

P 2

922 a PROBLEMATA

old days the scales had seven notes, 1 and seven has a
middle ? Again, since of the points which fall between
two extremes the middle alone forms a kind of starting-
35 point, 2 that which lies between the points which verge
towards either end in an extended space, being also a
starting-point 3 that will be the true middle. And since
nete and hypate are the extremes of the scale 4 and the
other sounds lie between them, of which the one which is
called mese alone is the beginning of the second tetra-
chord, 5 the name mese (* middle note ) is amply justified ;
for of the points lying between certain extremities, as has
been shown, the middle alone forms a beginning.

30 Why does a large chorus keep the rhythm better than a 45
small one ? 6 Is it because they look more to one man,
their leader, and dance 7 more slowly, and so more easily
achieve unity ? For mistakes occur more frequently in

35 quick singing. Now a large chorus attends to its leader,
and no one by differing from the rest would render himself
conspicuous by making himself heard above the rest : in a
small chorus, on the other hand, individuals can make
themselves more conspicuous ; they, therefore, vie with
one another instead of looking to their leader.

Why do most men sing high when they sing out of 46
Q22 b tune ? 8 Is it because it is easier to sing a high note than a
low note ? They have at all events a tendency to sing
high and so make mistakes in what they sing.

Why did the ancients, when they made the scales consist 47
of seven strings, leave in hypate but not nete ? 9 Or should
5 we say that they omitted not nete but what is now called
paramese and the interval of a tone? 10 They treated

1 See note on 918* 14. * Cp. Phys. 262*25.

5 Reading en eVeidq . . . a/J^r} ri j eWtv, [eoTivJ {TO) rwv <(eVi) ddrepov
. . . 6ta(TT?7fiari (MSS.) ava nevov, ov dp^jy, TOUT eVrcu pzcrov (W. D. R.).
Very possibly, however, eo-Tii/ . . . apxh is a gloss.

4 Reading ^v for /ueVoy with Usener.

5 i. e. in the old scale of seven notes.

6 This is a longer version of the problem of chapter 22.

7 Reading opxovvrai as suggested by E. Graf in 919*38.

8 Cp. above, chapter 26.

9 Cp. above, chapter 7 and the note on 918* 14.
10 i. e. the disjunctive.

BOOK XIX. 47 922

then, as the lower note of the upper pycnon ; 2
whence came the name mese, because 3 it was the end of
the upper tetrachord and the beginning of the lower, and
was in pitch in an intermediate relation between the
extreme notes.

48 Why do the choruses in tragedy not sing either in the 10
Hypodorian or in the Hypophrygian mode ? Is it because
these modes have very little of the kind of tune 4 which is
specially necessary to a chorus ? Now the Hypophrygian
mode has a character of action (hence in the Geryone 5 the
march-forth and arming are composed in this mode) ; and
the Hypodorian is magnificent and steadfast, and so is the 15
most suitable of all the modes to accompaniment by the
lyre. Now both these are unsuited to the chorus and more
proper for the characters on the stage ; for the latter
imitate heroes, and among the ancients the leaders alone
were heroes, and the people, of whom the chorus consists,
were mere men. So a woeful and quiet character and type 20
of music are suited to the chorus, for they are more human.
These characteristics belong to the other modes, but least
to the Phrygian among them for it is exciting and orgi
astic and most to the Mixolydian. 7 In accordance with this
mode, then, we adopt a passive attitude, and the weak are
more passive than the strong ; and so this mode is appro
priate to choruses. When we use the Hypodorian and
Hypophrygian modes, on the other hand, we are active, 25
and action is not fitting for choruses ; for the chorus is in

1 Reading with Jan fj-ea-rj rfj eV^nr*/.

2 Pycnon is a term used for the range covered by the three lower
notes of the tetrachord when that range is less than that which is
included between the two upper notes ; cp. Aristoxenus, i. 24.

3 Reading with Bojesen Trpotnjyopevo-ai/ [/;], on and putting a full-stop
at the end of the sentence.

4 Reading on (TO) ^eXo?.

5 A tragedy attributed to Nicomachus (Nauck 2 , p. 762).

c The MSS. here read viro^>pvyurrl t which cannot stand here, since
the Hypophrygian mode has already been shown to have the character
of action (TrpuKTiKos), which Aristotle in the Politics (i34i b 34) con
trasts with fvdova-KHTTiKos. The Phrygian mode is characterized in
the Politics (i342 b 3) as opyiavriKos and is therefore appropriate here.

7 Inserting with Bojesen /^uXio-ra Se r) jui^oXurWri from T.G* The
Mixolydian mode was mournful (Pol. 1340* 42 ff.) and is therefore
appropriate here.

922 b PROBLEMATA

attendance and takes no active part, for it simply shows
goodwill towards those with whom it is present.

Why is it that of the sounds which form a consonance 49
the lower is more suited to melody ? l Is it because
30 melody is in its own nature soft and tranquil, but becomes
harsh and full of movement by the admixture of rhythm ?
Now since the low note is soft and tranquil, and the high
note full of movement, of the notes which maintain the
same melody the lower would rather be more melodious 2 in
the same melody ; for melody in itself, 3 as has been shown,
is soft.

35 Why is it that the sounds produced from two jars of the 50
same size and quality, one empty and the other half- full,
give an accord in the octave ? Is it because the sound 4
produced from the half-full jar is double 5 that produced
from the empty jar ? This surely is just what happens in
the pipes. For the quicker the movement, the higher
Q23 a seems the note, and in larger spaces the air collects more
slowly, and in double the space in double the time, and
proportionately in the other spaces. A wine-skin too
which is double the size of another, gives an accord in the
octave with one which is half its size.

1 Reading with Bojesen /neAiKo>repoi< ; cp. 9i8 a 37. The meaning
seems to be that where there is an independent accompaniment, it
should be above, not below, the singing voice. This appears to have
been the Greek practice.

2 Reading /zeXtKobrepos 1 ; see last note. 3 Reading avro with C a .

4 Omitting <ai after yivcrat with Bojesen.

5 diir\a<ria here means twice as rapid .

923

BOOK XX

PROBLEMS CONCERNING SHRUBS AND 5
VEGETABLES

1 WHY is it that celery can endure salt water, but the leek
cannot ? Is it because the roots of the latter are weak, but
those of the former are strong, and that which is stronger
is less liable to be affected ?

2 What is the reason of the saying :

Mint should neither be eaten nor planted in season

of warfare ? l

Is it because mint has a cooling effect upon the body, as is :o
shown by the corruption which it causes in the semen ?
This is opposed to courage and spirit, being the same in
kind.

3 Why is it that some plants, though they have blossom,
have no fruit, such as the cucumber and the pumpkin and
the pomegranate ? Or have they fruit, the blossom being
the fruit ? For example the part which blossoms is a fruit- J 5
case, and the cucumber is a fruit-case.

4 Why is it that some plants are edible only after they
have been boiled, while others can be eaten raw ? Do the
juices of such plants as are not at first edible become
sweeter when the plants have been warmed by heat, whilst
in others the juices are originally sweet, and these can be 20
eaten raw ?

5 Why is it that some plants are boiled, others roasted ?
Is it because the moister plants do not require so much
moistening, 2 while the drier plants must not be further
dried ? Now anything which is boiled becomes moister

1 See Leutsch, Paroemiogr. ii. 530.

2 Reading ov TOO-OITOV {uyp(ivOij^<n}. The Latin version of T. G.
renders an quod humidiora non eatenus humectari . . . oportet .

923 a PROBLEMATA

and softer, and that which is less moist becomes dry if
exposed to the fire.

25 Why are some plants edible and others inedible ? Is it 6
owing to their juices ? For plants which in their raw state
have unconcocted juices and, when heated, do not undergo
change, are inedible. Now those of which the juice is
edible but somewhat strong are used as condiments ; for
plants which have a strong savour in a small compass serve
toflavour those of which the savour is distributed over a
large bulk.

30 Why is it that some plants live only until they have 7
produced seeds and having borne seeds dry up grass, for
instance, and the so-called herbs while others do not, but
bear seeds time after time ? And of those which live only
until they have produced seed why are the majority annuals,
while horse- parsley produces its fruit in the second year and

35 having done so dries up ? Is it because all things flourish
until their seed l reaches its prime (for man too continues
to grow until the age of thirty, sometimes in height 2 and
sometimes in bulk), but when they can no longer produce
seed, as in the case of man, they begin to dry up and grow
old in some cases slowly and in proportion? 3 The reason
why some forms of life are long-lived and others short
lived is to be the subject of another treatise. 4 But since
the perfection of the seed is the limit in all cases, it neces-

5 sarily follows that the short-lived bear fruit only once or
only a few times, and the long-lived many times ; so that
the weakest bear 5 only once and so necessarily dry up;
and those of them which can bear seed in a year are
annuals, whilst others, like horse-parsley, do so in the second
year, both plants and trees alike.

1 Reading KCU for Kara (Platt). Some MSS. read Ka\ Kara.

2 Reading /^/cei (Bonitz) for TrXq&t.

3 i. e. in proportion to their length of life.

4 Apparently a direct reference to de Longit. etBrev. Vitae 464^ 19 ff.

5 Reading eveyKelv (Bonitz) for cvcyicoi.

6 The Latin version here translates a longer text : alia postero ut
equapium. Ouae vero praevalida surgunt, haec annis plusculis post
fructificare incipiunt, diuque vitam agere possunt, fructificareque
saepius, ut arbores . This gives a much fuller sense and the Greek

BOOK XX. 8 923 b

8 Why is it that if one digs down to the roots of celery 10
and surrounds them with barley-husks, and puts earth over
these and then waters the plants, the roots become very
large? 1 Is it because the barley-husks, being hot and
spongy, hold the nourishment in a mass so that it does
not rise upwards, but, being hot, causes concoction, and so
considerable growth takes place ? i 5

9 Why is it that if one buries gourds or pumpkins in the
ground when they are still small, they become large ? 2
Is it because the w r ind and the sun dry everything up and
prevent growth, and make everything smaller in bulk
but closer in texture ? (As can be seen in the difference
between trees growing in windy and sunny :>J localities and 20
those in hollow and moist places, the latter being large and
spongy in texture, the former small and dense.) Now
the burying of things in the earth is the contrary of
this and produces a contrary result. (A similar difference
occurs in fruits placed in vessels; if pumpkins are placed in
hollow fennel-stalks or boxes, and pomegranates or apples 25
in earthenware jars, the apples become large and spongy, 4
but the pumpkins become small and hard because they
grow against a resisting surface.) The reason then is that
the nutriment is increased, because it is not dispersed by
the wind or dried up ; for the covering of earth prevents it
from being thus affected.

10 Why are the seeds of pungent plants more pungent than 30
the roots and the leaves ? Is it because everything is derived

text as we have it probably has a lacuna between T&> vvrepa) erei and
owTTrep ra devdpa.

1 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, de Cans. Plant, v. 6, 3.

2 Cp. Theophrastus, op. cit. v. 6, 4.

8 Reading etXcoSeo-i for e\(a8nv ; Theophrastus has eveiXois.
4 The text here is unsatisfactory and perhaps beyond emendation.
For the above translation the following text has been read : TO. p.ev

p.eydXa (TOjJifpa de, ol 8e fiiKpol arfppol de, avav6[JLVOl els avTirvnov. The
omission of ^ before els avrirvnov may be justified since (i) the
negative should be ov not p.i], and (2) ^ gives no sense. The phrase
els (\VTLTVTTOV seems to imply a reference to the well-known practice in
ancient and modern times of enclosing growing gourds in some narrow
receptacle in order to shape them for use as receptacles for liquid
(cp. Theophrastus, Hist. Plant, vii. 3, 5). The contrast then is
between gourds placed in a fennel-stalk or some other narrow receptacle
and apples stored in a large earthenware vessel.

9 23 b PROBLEMATA

from the seed and distributed to the other parts from it, as
it were pre-existing 1 in it, as some contend, including 1 the
juices and odours, since the odours always become distinc
tive as soon as the seeds are formed ? If, therefore, the
35 pungency in the rest of the plant is derived from the seed,
it is only natural that it should be present in the greatest
degree in the seed. 1

Why are thin radishes more pungent ? Is it because the II
larger radishes are more concocted owing to the lapse of
time ?

924* Why is it that the caper-plant will not grow easily in 12
tilled ground - for the experiment has often been made of
transplanting the roots or sowing the seed (for in some
places it is more profitable than roses) but grows best
5 among the tombs because the ground is most untrodden ?
As regards this and similar questions the principle must be
accepted that all things do not come into being and grow
from the same matter, but some things originally come
into being and grow from the corruption of other things
for instance lice and the hair on the body when its
10 nutriment is corrupted and when the body is itself 3 in
a state of deterioration. As therefore in the body cer
tain products are engendered from the excrement of
nutriment (which means that concoction is incomplete),
and since, when nature cannot prevail over the excre
ment, the commonest excretions are absorbed into the
bladder and bowels, while from others living organisms
1 5 are engendered 4 (and so these attain the greatest growth
in old age and disease 5 ), so in the earth some products are
engendered and grow from the concoction of nutriment,
others from excretions and matter that is in a condition
which is the opposite of concoction. Now tillage concocts

1 Reading aurw (= rw arrrepfJLdTi) for atrd.

2 Cp. Theophrastus, op. cit. i. 3, 6 ; iii. 2, i.

3 Reading atroO for da TO. Richards reads TOV for TO.

4 This passage is directly referred to in Meteor, iii. 38 l b 9-1 3, where
the question of the formation of living organisms in the body is said to
be treated h rot? eVepotr, which Alexander Aphrodisiensis interprets as
ev TOLS 7r/jO|3\jj/Lia(rt.

6 Because then nature has the least power of resistance.

BOOK XX. 12 924

the nutriment and makes it productive, and from this the
cultivated fruits are formed. The products, therefore, of
this cultivation are called cultivated because they are bene
fited by art, undergoing as it were a kind of training.
Plants, on the other hand, which cannot be so benefited 20
or are formed from an opposite condition, are wild and
will not grow in a highly tilled soil. For tillage spoils
them by trying to train them ; for they are engendered
from corruption. It is to this class that the caper-plant
belongs.

13 Why is it that, when radishes are in their prime in the
winter, if one cuts off the leaves and heaps earth round 25
them and treads it in so as to keep out the \vater, they
grow to an extraordinary size in the summer? 1 Is it
because the heaping up of the earth round them secures
them from becoming corrupted by preventing the water
from rotting them, and the nutriment, which the plant
used to send into the shoot, enters into the radish, so 30
that it must either itself increase in size or send out lateral
shoots and grow other roots, as do onions ? For onions,

if they are not pulled up each year but are left in the
ground during the winter, become multiplied. Now onions
are among the plants which send out shoots laterally ; but
the radish does not do so, and must therefore increase in
bulk, because it absorbs all the nutriment. 35

14 Why is it that if one plants pumpkins or gourds near a well
and, when they are ripe, lets them clown into the well and
covers them over, they remain green for a whole year ? 2 Is
it because the vapour from the water cools them and prevents
them from drying up and keeps them in good condition,
and the covering of them up fosters the breath which has
formed in them ? Their conservation is due to the fact that
they still receive nutriment, because their roots are left undis
turbed ; for even if one removes the shoots, when they have
borne fruit, and after cutting them away heaps earth round
the roots and treads it down, the plant will produce early 5

1 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, tie Cans. Plant, v. 6, 2-3.

2 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. cit. v. 6, 5-6.

9 24 b PROBLEMATA

pumpkins, because the roots can survive; for the pumpkin-
plant 1 is not a biennial. Plants treated in this way 2 will
bear fruit more quickly than seedlings, because the root,
the most important part of their organism, is already
present in their growth, whereas in seedlings the roots
must grow first. Furthermore, 3 the heaping of earth round
10 the root engenders warmth, so that it is preserved and
sends up a shoot more quickly. So too if one sows gourd-
seeds during the winter in small wicker baskets and waters
them with hot water and carries them out into the sun and
places them by the fire, very early gourds will be produced
if one plants them out in the ground, as they are, in the
baskets, when the proper season arrives.

15 Why are plants watered at dawn or at night or in the 15
evening? Is it in order that the sun may not consume the
water ? Or is it because, when the water is warm, it corrupts
the plants which are watered with it ?

Why is it that sweet-smelling seeds and plants promote 16
the flow of urine ? 4 Is it because they contain heat and
are easily concocted, and such things have this effect ? For

20 the heat which is in them causes quick digestion, and their
odour has no corporeal existence ; for evil-smelling plants,
such as garlic, owing to their heat, promote the flow of
urine, but their wasting effect is a more marked character
istic. But sweet-smelling seeds contain heat, because odour
is entirely engendered by the presence of some heat ; but
evil-smelling things are unconcocted. Now anything which

25 is to promote the flow of urine must be not only hot but
also easily concocted, so that it may accompany the liquids
in their downward course and effect their digestion.

Why is it that vegetables which are produced from older iy
seeds (for example, two or three years old) produce more

1 Reading ea-ri with C a . 2 Reading OVTOL for avroi

3 f v 77 is clearly corrupt, as it has no antecedent. It is clear, how
ever, that the right reading is en de r/ Trepiam^is a\eav Troiei, oWe
au&adai KOI darrov avievat fiXaarov, Cp. TheophraStUS, /. C., eri de f]
7Tpiaais a\tav irape^ovora Barrov avievai TTOKI (BXaorTOv.

4 This problem occurs also at xii. 12, and is partly identical with
i. 48. * Cp. 865 a 2i and note.

BOOK XX. 17 924

stalk than those grown from fresh seeds ? l Is it because,
just as in animals that which is at its prime produces 3
semen most readily, so too very old seeds lose their vigour
by evaporation, and those which are produced from fresh
seeds are too weak because they still contain excrement
which is alien to them, but those which are of moderate age
are strongest, because the moisture has left them, and so
they produce seed more readily ? And the production of
seed is the same process as the production of stalk, since
the seed comes from the stalk.

18 Why does rue grow best and most abundantly if it is 35
grafted on to a fig-tree ? 2 Now it is grafted inside the bark
and plastered with clay. Is it because the roots of the rue
require heat and warmth (and this is why they are benefited
by being surrounded with ashes), and the fig-tree contains
heat ? That this is so is shown by the fact that its sap is 925*
the most pungent of all and by the amount of smoke which

it produces when burnt/ 5 It therefore possesses the same
kind of heat and moisture as ashes, so that if ashes benefit
rue, it must necessarily flourish greatly when grafted on
the fig-tree, since, whereas ashes give off no fluid, the
flow of liquid from the fig-tree is continuous, its moisture
being never exhausted. 5

19 Why do some plants always produce empty stalks ?
Are they among those plants which have to produce some
thing other than stalk ? 4

20 Why is it that in Attica, while all other fruits are very
sweet, thyme is very bitter, yet thyme is a kind of fruit ?

Is it because the soil there is thin and dry/ so that the 10
plants which grow there do not contain much moisture ?

1 Cp. Theophrastus, op. cit. iv. 3, 5-6.

2 Cp. Theophrastus, op. cit. v. 6, 10.

3 Cp. Theophrastus, Hist. Plant, v. 9, 5.

4 The Latin version of T. G. apparently translates a different text
here, since it renders : l an illis quarum natura imbecillior est, has
rarum inanemque emittere caulem necesse est ?

5 There is clearly a lacuna here. The margin of X a notes iarws AeiVet
TI on aypos fKflvos Xe-rrros re KGU f?pos eVri. The Latin version of T. G.
also translates this reading, and it has been adopted in the above
translation.

9 25 a PROBLEMATA

In plants, then, which are naturally sweet, owing to the
moderate quantity of moisture which they contain, when
the sun has absorbed the greater part of it the remainder is
easily concocted ; for it is difficult for a large amount, but
easy for a moderate amount, to be ripened. Fruits, there -
15 fore, which are naturally sweet become more so; but in
those which are naturally dry and not sweet, the natural
moisture fails, because it is scanty, and is very far from
being sweet. For the sun absorbs the sweetest and lightest
part of it ; and these fruits have no superfluous moisture,
as have other fruits.

Why do pennyroyal and narcissi and onions bloom if 21
20 hung up at the time of the summer solstice ? Is it because
there is unconcocted nutriment in them, which l in winter
does not become concocted owing to the cold, but at the
summer solstice owing to the season becomes concocted,
and so the growth takes place ? This growth, however,
because there is no influx of moisture, quickly dies down ;
for if they have not some source of nutriment or influx of
25 moisture, they dry up. A similar phenomenon occurs in
Scythia, where, owing to the presence of abundant snow,
the corn remains a long time in the earth and then suddenly
shoots up.

Why does the onion alone make the eyes smart to such 22
an excessive degree (hence it is said to derive its name
because it makes one cover up the pupil), 2 whereas marjoram
and other pungent plants do not have this effect ? For the

30 nasturtium, though it is more stinging, does not cause
tears to the same extent if placed near the eyes, whereas
the onion has this effect both when so placed and when
eaten. Is it because many differences attach to each of the
pungent plants, which give each its peculiar property ?
The nasturtium then, because it is hotter, is so dry that it

35 prevails over the liquefaction which it causes ; for it causes
tears when it is eaten, but it does not cause tears when

1 Reading f/ for f) in 1. 21.

2 i. e. Kpo/jifjivov is popularly derived from Koprj, the pupil, and
to close.

BOOK XX. 22 925 a

placed near the eyes, because it does not give off any thin
vapour, being- too dry and hot to do so. But marjoram
and such warm plants are dry, though only slightly so ; and 9 2 5 b
that which is to cause tears must be stinging and moist and
viscous. This is why olive oil causes tears, though its sting
is weak ; for it penetrates owing to its viscosity and tenuity
and causes pain, and the pain causes melting. Now the 5
onion has such properties that its moisture and the vapour
which it gives off are hot and tenuous and viscous ; and so,
when it is placed near the eye, it causes tears, because the
vapour which it gives off is of such a character and carries
with it a thin moisture ; and, when it is eaten, the exhalation
penetrates and produces the same effect. 1 Garlic, on the 10
other hand, is hot and pungent and contains moisture, but is
not viscous ; and so does not cause tears.

23 Why is it that myrtle- berries which have been compressed
in the hand seem to us sweeter than those which have not
been so compressed? Is it for the same reason as makes 15
dried grapes sweeter than fresh clusters and undried grapes ?
For dried grapes are, it appears, flavoured -by the juice,
which is naturally sweet (for they are even externally satu
rated by it), but the grapes which are still in the cluster
are not so flavoured. So too myrtle-berries, which are
naturally sweet and have their sweetness within, like grapes 20
when they are compressed, become saturated by the
sweetness which is within them and are clearly sweeter
externally.

24 Why is it that, the smaller myrtle-berries are, the more
they tend to have no stones, and the same is true also of
dates and clusters of grapes, in which 2 the small grapes
have no stones at all or only smaller stones ? Is it because, 25
being less perfect, they have less distinctly formed stones ?
For the purpose of the stone is to contain the seed. Now
the berries are smaller, because they are mere offshoots and
imperfect, and they are less sweet than those which have

1 There is clearly a lacuna here. Sylb. supplies ravro
from T. G.

2 Omitting fi*.

925 b PROBLEMATA

proper stones ; for they are less concocted, and concoction
is a process which produces perfection.

30 Why is it that in some fruits the parts which are near the 25
root are more bitter (for example in the cucumber), but in
others the parts towards the upper extremity (for example in
acorns) ? Is it because in the former the nutriment in that
part is unconcocted, because there is a continual influx
along the root ; while the latter are naturally dry, and so,
when the sweetness is drawn off from the extremity and

35 has become concocted, they are henceforward dry and the
bitterness is left behind like salt ? Now as anything becomes
dry, it becomes more bitter, just as olives and acorns
become bitter as they grow old.

g26 a Why do some plants sprout when they are not in the 26
earth, but either cut off or placed in store, lily-stalks, for
example, and garlic and onions ? l Is it because they all
have nutriment within themselves and not in any definite
place outside the plant ? 2 [It is therefore their superabun-
5 dance of nutriment which makes them sprout, as is clear
from the fact that squills and purse-tassels do the same.]
Now each of them grows not merely because it contains
nutriment, but only when that nutriment is concocted and
distributed ; it therefore contains nutriment before, but it
only grows when the season comes at which this process
takes place owing to the concoction caused by the season, 3
as happens also to crocodiles eggs. The growth, however,
10 is not continuous, -because there is no influx of more
nutriment.

Why is it that garlic and onions grow better according 27
as they are drier when planted, whilst other plants grow
worse under such conditions? Is it because all plants of
this kind are exceedingly full of moisture ? If, then, they
are planted in this condition, they enjoy equable conditions.

1 See below, chapter 28.

2 ovdev ff)vrov is obviously corrupt. For the above translation ega>0v
TOV (pvrov has been read. The two following sentences 77 TTfpiovcria . . .
TTOLovatv, which occur again in chapter 28, are omitted by the best MSS.

3 Reading Trerrouo-^s 1 (r^s) &pas.

BOOK XX. 27 9 26 a

A further reason is that they are less likely to rot if they
are dried before being planted. 15

28 Why is it that garlic and onions alone among plants
sprout when they are stored away ? l Is it because they
are full of moisture and nutriment ? It is abundance of
nutriment, then, which makes them sprout, as is clear
from the fact that squills and purse-tassels do the same.
But they grow only when the proper season for each of 20
them comes.

29 Why is it that plants which are watered with cold water
are sweeter than those watered with warm water ? Is it
because the warm water when it becomes enclosed in the
plant is saltier (just as that which is saltier is hotter, and
that which is sweet is the opposite, that is, in a sense, cold) ?
Now the nutriment of vegetables is liquid, and it is this 25
which gives them their juices.

30 Why is it that garlic has a stronger odour when it has
run to stalk than when it is young ? Is it because, when it
is young, there is still a large quantity of alien moisture in
it which deprives it of its strength ? When, however, the
plant has ripened, the alien moisture having been already
excreted, it then has its own proper odour ; and this is 30
naturally pungent. 2 Similarly, all other fruits when they
are young are more watery. This is the reason why young
onions are less pungent.

31 Why is it that, if myrtle-branches are not embalmed, 3 the
berries rather than the leaves drop off, whereas, if they are
embalmed with seaweed, the leaves drop off but the berries 35
do not ? Is it what naturally happens if the branches are
not embalmed, for the berries naturally drop off when they
become ripe ? This does not occur when the branches are
stored away, but the moisture in the seaweed only prevents
the moisture in the berries from undergoing change. The
leaves, on the other hand, drop off as the branches become Q26 b
dry, and the seaweed, which is salty, has a drying effect

1 Cp. above, chapter 26.

2 dpifjLela is omitted by a misprint after (frvcrci in Bekker s text.

3 Apparently for use as chaplets.

645-25 Q

926 b PROBLEMATA

upon them. The leaves thus undergo different processes
when they remain on the tree and when they are stored
away.

Why do melons l grow best in marshy plains which are 32
5 humid, for example, round Orchomenus and in Egypt,
which appears to be a well- watered country? Now
marshy districts are full of water and melons themselves are
somewhat moist ; and this is why those grown in gardens
are poor. Is it because they have to be planted deep

10 owing to the hardness of the ground? For clayey, flat
ground becomes very hard, and plants grow best which are
deeply planted. Or is it because the ground must be dry,
because the plant itself is naturally moist ? For thus being
pulled in opposite directions it will attain the mean. Now
ground which is somewhat marshy but deep contains
nutriment owing to the depth of the soil and the locality,

15 but not in an excessive quantity, because the ground dries
up again.

Why is it that rue and certain unguents give the per- 33
spiration an evil odour ? 2 Is it because things which have
a heavy and pungent odour, mixing with the excretory
fluids, make the odour of these still more unpleasant ?

20 Why is rue said to be a remedy against the evil eye ? 3 34
Is it because men think they are victims of the evil eye
when they eat greedily or when they expect some enmity
and are suspicious of the food set before them ? For
instance, when they take anything for themselves from the
same course, they offer some one else a portion, adding the

25 words, so that you may not cast the evil eye upon me .
All therefore will take with alarm of what is offered them,
whether liquid or solid, of those foods, the constriction or
vomiting forth of which causes the solids to be carried up
wards and ejected or the flatulence from the liquid to give

1 Reading 01 O-LKVOI (of) ne^ovcs (Richards).

2 Repeated from ii. 13, where see note on 867 b 9.

3 The belief in the evil eye was evidently as widespread in the
Mediterranean lands in ancient times as it is to-day ; see Otto Jahn,
Berichte d. Sdchsischen Gesellschaft, 1855, pp. 28 ff., and A. Michaelis,

J.H.S., 1885, P . 312.

BOOK XX. 34 9 26 b

rise to pain and writhing". Rue, therefore, being eaten
beforehand, since it is naturally warming*, rarefies the organ
which receives the food and the whole body, with the result 30
that it drives out l the flatulence 2 enclosed within it.

35 Why is it that marjoram, being thrown into the must,
makes the wine sweet, and two cupfuls are thrown into
a jar of wine ? Is it because it takes away the elements
which cause harshness by absorbing into itself by its dryness 35
the watery and sedimentary parts ? That it is these which
cause harshness is shown by the fact that wines are less soft

if water is added or if they have been allowed to stand
a long time on the lees. Also when they make raisin
wine, 3 they expose the grapes for a long time to the sun,
which draws out the watery element and concocts the 927*
remainder. Now marjoram produces the same result, for
it is dry and hot, and so naturally has a lasting effect.

36 Why do black myrtle -trees have thicker foliage than
white ? Is it because they are a wilder species ? That they
are so is proved by the fact that they grow in the untilled 5
ground 4 and undergo very little modification as a result of
cultivation. Now wild plants invariably have denser foliage ;
for, because their fruit is less concocted, the nutriment is
diverted into the foliage.

1 Reading c-gudtlv: all MSS. read cguBsv.

2 The Teubner text misprints rrvevpn as ircvpa.

3 Reading y\v<vv (sc. olvov) for y\vKv t see Bonitz, Index, I57 a 17.

4 Reading apyols (Bussemaker) for dypols.

BOOK XXI

PROBLEMS CONCERNING BARLEY-MEAL,
BARLEY-CAKE, AND THE LIKE

WHY is it that barley-gruel and wheaten-flour become i
whiter if oil is poured on to them, though oil is reddish in
colour ? Is it because oil naturally foams w r hen it is mixed
with liquid, and foaming causes whiteness ? Now mixing is
carried out by pounding and motion, and is most complete
15 in the case of corporeal substances. This process occurs in
foods which are boiled, and so makes them whiter.

Why is it that foods made from wheat suit our bodies 2
best and are more nourishing than those made from barley ? l
Is it because wheat contains a moderate amount of stickiness,
and food ought to have this quality, since it ought to cling
20 and adhere to the body, and its stickiness causes it to do
so ? But barley 2 is less cohesive, and so cakes in which
the barley is well kneaded are more nourishing than those
in which it is not kneaded.

Why is it that of wheaten-flour that which is ground first 3
is whiter, but of barley-meal that which is ground last ? 3
Is it because barley, being dry, breaks into pieces, whereas
25 wheat is soft and crushes ? Now in both it is the inner part
which is whitest.

Why do loaves appear whiter when they are cold than 4
when they are hot ? Is it somehow for the same reason
that stale oil is whiter than fresh ? For the cause of the
30 blackness is the water which in both cases is present in

1 Cp. Hippocr., de Diaeta, ii. 40.

2 Reading dXXa (17 Kpidrf) -^advp^repov. y\ia-\pos and tyadvpos are
regularly contrasted (cp. 11. b 7 ff.), hence it is impossible for \/m#t;pco-
repov to refer to f] CK TOV rrvpov rpofprj, which has already been stated to
be yXicrxpov. The Latin version of T. G. renders hordeum vero
rigidius est, and evidently read f] Kpdr], though ^advpcarepov is
incorrectly translated.

3 A longer version of this problem occurs in chapter 7.

BOOK XXI. 4 927

larger quantities when they are fresh ; but after a time,
owing 1 to evaporation, the water remaining near the surface
becomes less. Now it is either the passage of time or the
heat of the sun which causes evaporation from the oil ; and
from loaves the heat goes forth as they cool and has entirely
departed when they are cold, whereas it is still present when
they are warm.

5 Why do loaves which contain no salt weigh heavier than 35
those which are salted, the other ingredients being exactly
the same ? The contrary would be expected, since salt is
added, and salt is heavier than water. Is it because the
salt causes drying to take place ? This is why things
which are preserved with salt remain uncorrupted ; for the
moisture in them is taken up and dried up by the salt, and

it is the moisture in things that is corrupted by heat.
So too in bread the moisture is taken up by the salt and
evaporates outside. Stale bread therefore is lighter than
hot bread, since it is colder. Now in loaves which do not
contain salt this moisture is present in greater quantities 5
and makes them heavier.

6 Why is it that loaves which have become cold, if they are
moistened and placed in contact with one another, do not
cohere, whereas hot loaves do so ? Is it because the cold
loaves give off with the vapour the sticky moisture which
is in them, and, because this has gone forth, do not cohere
(for the water with which they were wetted is too un- I
cohesive) ; but the hot loaves contain a certain amount of
stickiness, and so, when they are moistened and the vapour
comes forth, the heat, owing to its rarity, is given off, but
the sticky matter, which comes out with it and mingles with
the moisture, causes the loaves to adhere together ? l

7 Why is it that of wheaten-flour that which is ground first 2 T
is whiter, but of barley-meal that which is ground last ? Is
it because barley, being dry, breaks into pieces, and this
happens most when it is ground for a very long time, but

1 Reading Tj-poo-e xeo-tfm eavrois (so too Bussemaker).

2 Reading ra Trpami for ra aX^tra, cp. chapter 3 ( a 23) which is a
shorter version of the same problem.

927 b PROBLEMATA

the flour which is inside the wheat is soft and fine and is
20 crushed out at first ? Now in both cases it is the inner part
which is whitest.

Why is it that barley-cake becomes more indigestible the 8
more it is kneaded, whereas wheaten-bread becomes easier
to digest ? Is it because dough becomes less by being much
kneaded (and this is the nature of that which is sticky), but
the moisture has been expelled from every part of the loaf

25 by the fire, so that, when the moisture has been entirely
expelled, the loaf becomes more uncohesive the more it is
kneaded, because in the kneading it is divided up into
smaller particles ? Now that which is uncohesive is more
easily concocted. Barley-cake, on the other hand, the more
it is kneaded becomes more sticky, as the liquid mingles in
it ; and that which is sticky is not easily divided up, and

30 such foods are not easily concocted ; for that which is to be
concocted must be split up into small parts.

Why does barley-cake become less when it is kneaded, 9
whereas dough becomes more ? Is it because barley- meal
when moistened and kneaded unites owing to the binding
quality of the moisture, because it is of even texture and
35 granulated, but wheaten-flour rises, because it is very
dense ? For that which is dense grows hot when kneaded
and, when it is hot and inflated, it rises, as does the flesh.

But why does dough increase more when it is heated than 10
Q28 a barley-cake does ? l Is it because dough contains moisture
which is not separated in such a way that it can escape
when warmed, owing to the kneading? When therefore
it is warmed, breath is engendered, and more breath is
necessarily engendered from a greater amount of moisture.

5 Why is it that although honey is more adhesive than n
water, wheaten-flour is more uncohesive, when it is boiled
or baked, if it is mixed with honey-water than with water ?
Is it because water becomes stiff and solid under the influence
of the heat, whereas the honey becomes solid but also has

1 Cp. chapter 23.

BOOK XXI. ii 928

a drying effect, and so makes the food more uncohesive
(for this quality is produced by dry ness) ? 10

12 Why do twice-baked loaves, when they are cool, not
become hard ? Is it because wheat has in it a certain sweet
and sticky juice, which is as it were its soul ? This can
be illustrated by the fact that when it is dried it becomes
quite empty, but, when it is wetted, it expands. 1 This juice, 15
therefore, being present also in wheaten-flour, especially in
that of the purest quality, when the flour is made into dough
and the dough is kneaded the same thing 2 happens, as is
proved by the fact that when it is boiled it becomes more
digestible. 3 When, therefore, the bread is baked for the
first time, the thin and light part of the moisture 4 is
evaporated from the bread, and the part of the flour which 20
most resembles chaff is burnt out. But when the dough is
taken out and kneaded again, the smoothest part of the
flour and the 5 stickiest part of the moisture being left
mingle more with one another, owing to the fact that they
have become smoother and stickier, and owing to the effect
of the heat ; for their mixing resembles the process of 25
dyeing, so that the dough, when subsequently kneaded, is
like boiled flour. For when this G dough is kneaded and
the lightest flour and the stickiest moisture are left, the
bread, when it has been exposed to the fire, becomes
glutinous and does not dry up ; for that which is sticky
cannot be separated, and that which is dense does not of 30
itself give up any moisture. 7 Twice-baked bread then
undergoes this same process for the reasons mentioned
above, and, always containing moisture, does not become
hard.

13 Why is it that we can go on partaking of some kinds
both of solid and of liquid food for a long period for

1 Reading cK^vaarai, since eKcpiWat does not offer any contrast to

KfVOVTCll.

2

Reading ravro for avro.

3 The point here is not clear, unless boiling, like kneading (cp.
chapter 8), gets rid of TO -yXto-xpoV and causes tyaOvpoTrjs.

4 Omitting 8e.

5 Reading KOI (TO) TOU vypov. 6 Reading e/cctVov.
7 Reading TrpoiVrm uypdV. TO.VTO ovv TOVTO Ka\ dirrvpos KT\.

Q28 a PROBLEMATA

35 instance, food made from barley-meal and wheaten-flour,
and dry wines, and water whereas we cannot partake
continually of others, though they are pleasanter to the
taste ? Is it because some of the foods which we take tend
to float on the stomach and are highly nutritious, 1 so that
when one has discharged them, 2 though their first nutri-
Q28 b ment has been consumed, a considerable force still remains
in the body, concocted for the first bodily process but
unconcocted for its final purpose and for the succeeding
process ? Now most of the pleasing foods belong to this
class ; for the fatty and sweet and rich foods seem pleasantest

5 to our taste, and these, however they differ from one another,
are all foods which are nutritious, and not difficult of con
coction, and apt to float on the stomach ; their force is
therefore lasting, if one takes one s fill of them, and the
perception of them does not quickly pass away ; 3 for the
feeling of satiety does not only continue while they are in
the stomach but also when their nutriment has been dis-

io tributed to other parts of the body. Or is this not the
only reason, and is there a further reason, namely, that
some foods are naturally suited and akin to us ? For our
bodies accept all such foods more readily because they are
natural, while they accept less readily those which are
unnatural. And different foods suit different tempera
ments ; for example, honey is the natural food of bees, so

15 that they take no other, though they are physically weak ;
so that what they consume must be small in amount, but
must be to their strength as what men eat is to theirs. And
so any pleasing foods which are of this kind seem pleasing
because they are present in small quantities in our nature,

20 but they only appear so for a short time, and then soon
cause a feeling of satiety. But we always need the natural
foods, so that we feel less satiety from foods continually
taken other than those which are most pleasing in themselves. 4

1 Cp. de Sensu, 442* 10-12.

2 *f i/co$axri is apparently an impersonal third person plural, which
in this problem alternates with the first person plural.

3 Reading eK.\nreli> (Bussemaker) for eK\nrrj, and placing a comma

after

* <V avra ov T&V rjdia-Twv is apparently equivalent to ov T&V 81

)i<rrooy.

BOOK XXL 14 928*

14 Why is it that the same things seem pleasant when we
are becoming accustomed to them and not pleasant if we
partake of them too continuously, though being accustomed 25
to anything is doing it often and continuously ? Is it because
custom engenders a receptive habit but does not bring
satiety, whereas taking anything continuously fills up the
desire, just as a vessel l is filled ; for desire is a kind of
void ? 2 Now habits, when exercised, increase and grow,
but vessels when they are filled full do not become any
bigger. Hence custom, being an exercise, increases the 30
receptive habit ; but that which is continuously taken fills
up and satisfies the desire, and, when this is satisfied, we no
longer receive any more, and nothing can increase the desire
for the reasons already stated regarding the filling of vessels.
Furthermore, custom is not pleasant through constantly
giving pleasure (for such things too cause pain through 35
continual practice), but because we enter upon the beginning
of the process with pleasure and can continue doing the
same thing longer than if we were unaccustomed to it.
In the same way then as custom, which is pleasant, causes
pain, so too do all other pleasant things ; for things which
happen and foods which are taken continuously, both alike
cause pain. The reason is that the powers of acceptance 929*
and action which we possess in ourselves 3 are not unlimited

but limited, and when they have reached their full capacity
(and this is continually visible to an increasing extent) the
receptive powers are satisfied, and the powers for action
can no longer function. 5

15 Why does dough become white when it is kneaded, while
barley-cake becomes blacker? Is it because the surface of
the barley-meal becomes drier, and it is the 4 heat in the
moisture which causes the whiteness? Or is it because,
through exposure to the heat, the surface of barley-meal
attracts the moisture, since it consists of larger particles ? :

1 Reading dyyelov for mnov (Bonitz).

2 Reading KCVOV for xal (Bonitzj. 3 Reading avrols (Bonitz).

4 Reading TO de ev vypa> Qeppov trout (Y a omits 6 before noiel). The
Latin version of T. G. renders calor autem humori permistus can-
dorem gignit .

Q29 a PROBLEMATA

Why does barley-meal adhere better together when 16
mixed with water than with oil, though oil is more viscous ?
Yet that which is viscous is more binding, and oil is more
viscous than water. Is it because water is thinner and so
penetrates into everything and makes the barley-meal
15 soft, and the grains adhere together better and are com
pressed into one another, even though pressed together
without any kneading ?

Why does bread which is either not kneaded or very 17
much kneaded break up ? Does the unkneaded bread do
so because it is not sufficiently bound together ? Now it is
the kneading that binds the bread ; so that unkneaded
bread is already on the way to breaking up. Further, it
20 contains much moisture not properly mixed in. T Bread
which is very much kneaded is dry, because it has very
little moisture ; for when it is heated, the moisture all
escapes. So that in both cases the bread breaks up because
much moisture goes forth ; for much moisture is actually
present in the unkneaded bread, and in the over-kneaded
bread much (escapes) 2 compared to what remains behind.

25 Why is the admixture of barley-meal and liquid lighter 18
than the two things together when unmixed ? Is it because,
when they are mixed, air is enclosed in them ? Or is it
because part of the water is evaporated by the heat in the
barley-meal, and so the mixture becomes smaller in bulk?
The air, however, if it were also mixed in, would not make

30 the mixture any lighter ; for air enclosed in air possesses
weight.

Why do milk and sweet wine appear sweeter it drunk 19
with barley-meal? Do they appear sweeter in contrast
with anything which is not sweet (for barley-meal is not
sweet) ? Or is it because the barley-meal continues to hold
35 sweetness, and so the perception of it is prolonged ?

Why does the same potion seem less strong if it is drunk 20
with barley-meal ? Is it because the barley unites what has

1 Which therefore escapes when the baking takes place.

2 The text as it stands contradicts diet TO o\lyoi> f^eii/ vypov (1. 21),
and some such word as eet(ri appears to have dropped out.

BOOK XXI. 20 929*

one quality with what has another, or because the barley-
meal interferes with the potion and destroys it, absorbing
it into itself?

21 Why does gruel take up more water than the wheat from 929 b
which such gruel is made ? Is it because the gruel is a kind
of flour, and flour takes up more water (for its bulk is
greater than that of the wheat, for even the particles of the
wheat are packed closely together) ? Now that which is 5
more holds more both for this reason l and also because
both flour and gruel contain heat, and heat both attracts
the moisture more and expends it by evaporation.

22 Why does wheaten-flour increase much more in propor
tion than barley-meal when it is kneaded ? 2 Is it because
flour admits a large quantity of water, but barley-meal only

a little? (But why does it admit more, for barley- meal 10
would naturally be expected to do so, because it has been
exposed to heat, whereas the flour has not, and that which
has been exposed to heat is drier ?) Or is it because flour
admits of more kneading, the reason being that it is com
posed of smaller particles ? As therefore it is potentially as
it were more manifold by reason of the smallness of its
parts, so much the more water does it take up. For it 15
uses the water as a glue a metaphor employed by
Empedocles in the Physics, when he says gluing barley
with water and it consumes much water for this reason.

23 Why does dough increase more when it has been heated
than barley-cake does ? 4 Is it because it contains moisture
which is not separated in such a way that it can escape
when it is warmed, and this 5 moisture, becoming breath 20
and not being able to escape (as it can in the barley-cake)
owing to the density of the dough (for that which is made
up of smaller particles is dense), makes the dough, therefore,

1 Reading with Bonitz TrAcTou /cat (ia) TOVTO.

2 Cp. chapter 9.

5 Cp. Meteor. 382* I and Diels, Vorsokr? i, p. 239, 7,

4 A longer version of chapter 10.

5 Reading with Bonitz 6 nvevfj-a yevo^evov /ecu ov bvva^vov KT\.

Q2g b PROBLEMATA

rise and causes the mass to be greater ? Furthermore, the
moisture which it contains is more considerable, and it is
from this, when it is heated, that the breath is engendered ;
and from the greater amount of moisture more breath must
25 necessarily be engendered.

Why is it that, of persons engaged in the preparation of 24
cereals, those who handle barley become pale and are subject
to catarrh, while those who handle wheat are healthy ? l Is it
because wheat is more easily concocted than barley, and
therefore its emanations are also more easily concocted ?

30 Why is it that bread, if one toasts it, becomes harder, 25
whereas, if one warms it, it becomes moister up to a certain
point ? Is it because, when it is toasted, the moisture goes
out of it, and so it becomes harder, whereas, when it is
warmed, the moisture having acquired consistency is
liquefied again by the fire, and so the bread becomes
moister ?

35 Why does flour, as it cools, become less closely packed, 26
but barley-meal more so ? Is it because things which are
made up of small particles contain no vacant spaces, and
heavy things, by the pressure which they exert, take up
the same space whether they are more or less 2 numerically ?
Barley- meal then is soft ; when it cools, therefore, it becomes
less, so that the less is more compressed. 3 But wheaten-
93<D a flour already consists of small particles, and so it does not
cool in this way, 4 but in such a way as to become lighter
and not so as to become more closely packed by com
pression ; for wheaten-flour is naturally heavier than barley-
meal.

1 This problem occurs again at xxxviii. 10; cp. also 863 a 35 ff. It
is quoted as occurring in the QVO-IKU npo/SAiJ/uara of Aristotle by
Apollonius, Hist. Mirab. 7.

2 Reading ra TrXeuo ($) e Aorta).

3 Reading a-u/zTrte Cerai nXcov. T. G. renders ut quod minus est . . .
plus constipet in se .

4 Reading 8ia TOVTOV. T. G. renders non ideo resiccatur .

930

BOOK XXII
PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH FRUIT 5

1 WHY is it that the volume of food necessary for repletion
is not proportionate l in the same persons if they eat fruit
at the beginning and at the end of a meal? Is it because
fruit is much heavier than solid food ? This can be illus
trated by the fact that figs, though eaten last, are vomited 10
out last. If, therefore, they are eaten first, owing to their
weight they sink downwards and leave ample space above,
so that one can easily contain the volume of solid food. If,
however, the converse takes place, the solid food when it
enters in, because it does not sink downwards, quickly
occupies the vacant upper space.

2 Why is it that, although sweet foods are more akin to us
than pungent, we are more quickly sated by the former? 2 15
For the contrary might have been expected, since we might
naturally be supposed to be less sated by foods which are
akin to us. Is it because the organ whereby we receive
nourishment 3 and the body, which is nourished, are not
sated equally quickly, but sometimes the stomach is full, in
those, for instance, who are thirsty, but the thirst is not less ?
For we do not cease being thirsty because the stomach is 20
full, but when each part of the body has drawn thence its
own particular moisture ; and we cease being thirsty only
when they have received this in sufficiency. The same
thing also occurs when we are hungry.

3 Why are we more quickly sated by sweet than by pungent
foods ? 4 Is it because we cease desiring sweet things sooner ? 25
Or, while it is not generally admitted 5 that we become

1 Reading dvaXoyos with C a , AP, and according to Bekker Y a .

2 Cp. chapter 3.

3 Reading r/je$d/ie#a with Bonitz for 7rAvpou/ze#a.

4 Cp. chapter 2.

5 Putting a comma after y\vK.euv in 1. 27 ; it is obvious that the
sentences introduced by /zeV and fie are parallel and that the general
sense is the same as that of 11. 16-22 above.

930 a PROBLEMATA

satiated as the stomach is filled by sweet foods, yet might it
not be said that our desire is more quickly sated by them ?
Or is it because desire is simply a want, which occurs when

30 we no longer have any nutriment in us or very little ?
Pungent foods then are not nourishing, but contain little
nutriment and a considerable amount of excrement. We
therefore naturally seek to eat them in large quantities, and
yet do not satiate our desire with them, 1 because we still lack
nutriment and they do not contain it. But all sweet foods

35 are nutriment, and the body derives a large amount of nutri
ment from a small quantity of them. When, therefore, it
derives a large amount of nutriment, it can no longer eat,
because it cannot tolerate more. We are therefore naturally
more quickly satisfied by sweet foods.

93O b Why is it that fruits and meat and the like remain 4
uncorrupted if placed in skins, when these are tightly
inflated, as also do substances placed in closely covered
vessels ? 2 Is it because all things become corrupt through
being in motion, and things which are full are without
motion (for it is impossible for anything to be moved
without there being a void), and these vessels are full ?

5 Why does wine seem bitter when drunk after the eating 5
of rotten fruits ? Is it because such rottenness contains
bitterness ? That, then, which remains on the tongue,
mingling with the draught and becoming diffused in it,
makes the draught bitter. The fruit by itself, when eaten,
10 seems less bitter, because juice of this kind takes effect at
many different points and is divided up into small particles.

Why should dried fruits be eaten ? Is it in order that we 6
may drink sufficiently ? For we ought not only to drink to
satisfy the thirst which is engendered by solid food, but also
when the solid food is finished.

J 5 Why do roasted nuts deteriorate when they become cool, 7
and also bread and acorns and many such things, but
improve when they are heated again ? Is it because, when

1 Reading

2 A shorter version of this problem occurs in xxv. 17.

BOOK XXII. 7 9 3o b

they become cold, the juice becomes hard, but, when they
are warmed up, it becomes liquid again, and "it is the juice
which is pleasing ?

8 Why is it that, for the proper enjoyment of fruits such as 20
figs and the like, one ought to drink with them either
unmixed wine or water, which are the opposites of one
another? Is it because fruit is both hot and moist owing
to the manner of its growth ? For it contains much both
of fire and of moisture ; and so, owing to the fire, the juice
causes as it were a boiling within, such as must makes on 25
the surface (though the others, the hard-shelled fruit, also
have this force, but in a less degree), while the large
quantity of moisture causes an unconcocted condition.
Water then, owing to its coldness, extinguishes the boiling,
as wine also usually does by its heat ; for it takes away its
power, just as one fire extinguishes another if the latter be 3
less. And wine by its heat is better able to concoct the
moisture, and by its weight it prevails over the scum formed
on the surface by the boiling.

9 Why is it that those dried figs are sweetest which are slit
twice, and not those which are slit either many times or not
at all ? Is it because, if they are slit many times, most of
the sweetness escapes and evaporates with the moisture, 35
whereas in those which are entirely closed the watery
element is considerable, because it has not been turned into
vapour ? Those, however, which have been slit, but not
many times, do not suffer from either of these dis
advantages.

IO Why is it that figs when they are dried l in an oven are
harder if they are left to cool in the oven than if they are
taken out to cool ? Is it because in the oven all the moisture
is evaporated by the heat, whereas outside the surrounding
air cools the moisture and prevents it from escaping and
the moisture retains its consistency rather than evaporates ? 2 5
Now what is dry is hard, and what is moist is soft.

1 Reading with Sylburg ^r/paird/uejxj for \l/vx6(j.fva.

2 Reading u o-iw orurat /uaAXoy f) eur/iu(ei. paXXov yap e ^ar/^fi does
not give the required sense.

93 i a PROBLEMATA

Why is it that wine and water seem sweeter when taken II
with something sour, if, for instance, one munches acorns
or myrtle-berries or something- of the kind ? Is not this
natural and does it not happen in other things too ? For
everything seems to assert its identity more forcibly when

10 compared with its opposite, and here the tastes of the two
opposites are in a way set against one another. Or is it
because, as in objects which are being dyed, the tongue has
already been permeated by the sour matter and opens its
pores, and so the sweetness can penetrate better? For
objects which are being dyed are first of all moistened in
sour liquid, because that which is thus permeated 1 takes

15 the dye better.

Why do sweet things seem to be less sweet when they 12
are hot than when they are cold ? Is it because two sensa
tions of the two qualities are present together, and so that
of heat dispels the other ? Or is it because that which is
sweet 2 is also hot, and it is therefore a case of fire upon
fire , and thus the heat prevents the perception of the
20 sweetness ? Or is it because fire takes away the power of
everything, since it causes motion ? Things, then, which are
hot are nearer to change, but when they cool they become
stable again.

Why is it that chaff concocts hard fruits and does not i<
corrupt those which are already concocted ? Is it because
25 chaff is both hot and absorbent ? It, therefore, by its heat
causes concoction, while owing to its absorbent property it
attracts the corrupted impurity, which therefore does not
cause corruption.

Why do figs, which are soft and sweet, destroy the teeth ? L
Do they, owing to their stickiness, penetrate into the gums,
and, because they are soft, insinuate themselves into the
30 spaces between the teeth, and, being hot, quickly cause
decay ? Perhaps also, owing to the hardness of the seeds,
the teeth are quickly caused to ache in the process of
chewing them up.

1 Reading ro> (TO)

2 Reading y\v<v for yXevnos, which is invariably used to mean must .

BOOK XXIII

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH SALT WATER
AND THE SEA

1 WHY is it that the waves do not ripple in the deep open 35
sea, but only where it is confined and shallow ? l Is it
because a small amount of liquid, as it is carried along, is
more divided up by the wind than a large amount ?

2 Why do the waves sometimes begin to move before the
winds reach them ? 2 Is it because the portion of the sea
near the source of the wind being impelled along first has 93l b
continually the same effect upon the adjoining part, and so,
since the sea is continuous, the same effect is caused in
every part of it, as though from one continuous impetus ?
Now this occurs simultaneously, with the result that the
first and the last parts of the sea are set in motion at

the same time. This effect is not produced in the air,
because it is not a single body (since many hindrances affect 5
it from all sides, which often cut short the first and most
vigorous movement) ; the sea, however, suffers from no such
impediments, because it is heavier and less easily disturbed
than the air.

3 Why do ships seem to be more heavily loaded in harbour
than out at sea, and why do they travel more quickly from I0
the open sea towards the land than from the land towards
the open sea ? Is it because the greater quantity of water
offers more resistance than 3 the less, and the vessel sinks
deeper into the latter, because it prevails more over it, for

it pushes up the water from below ? Now in a harbour the
sea is shallow, but deep out at sea; so that a vessel will 15
seem to carry a heavier load in harbour and will move with
greater difficulty, because it is sunk deeper into the water,

1 Cp. below, chapter 24.

2 Cp. below, chapters 12 and 28. 3 Omitting e /c.

645-25

93i b PROBLEMATA

which offers less resistance. But in the open sea the contrary
happens.

Why is it that if anything (for example an anchor) is 4

30 thrown into the sea when it is rough, a calm ensues ? Is it
because the sea is stopped by the descending object, with
which a certain amount of air is carried down, and this air,
carried in a direct course downwards and drawn thither,
draws with it also the lateral force which is disturbing the
sea ? Now a wave does not move downwards from above
but along the surface, and, when it ceases, a calm ensues.

2 5 Furthermore, the sea, as it closes in upon the space opened
by the descending object, makes an eddy, and eddies move
in a circle. Now since it is a case of a straight line touching
a circle at a point (and waves travel obliquely in a straight
line), the result would be that the waves touch the circum
ference of the eddy only at a point, both for the reasons

30 stated and because the eddy pushes the wave off as soon as
it comes into contact with it. The place, then, where the
eddy is, being without waves, the result is that there is
a calm where the surface is broken, because the air, which
descended with the object thrown in, subsequently ascending
and thrusting the sea upwards, causes it as it were to bubble ;

35 for a bubble consists of moisture thrust up by air from below.
Now every bubble is smooth and still. A proof that the
above process takes place is given by the fact that the sea
at the point where the object is thrown in rises a moment
later to a higher level than the surrounding sea.

Why is it that sometimes vessels which are journeying g

over the sea in fine weather are swallowed up and disappear

932 a so completely that no wreckage even is washed up ? Is it

because, when a cavernous space breaks open in the earth

beneath the sea, the ship at the same time follows the

rush of air l into the sea and into the cavern ? And in like

manner the sea, being carried everywhere 2 round in a

5 circle, is borne downwards ; and this constitutes a whirl-

1 It appears unnecessary to read here pev^aros for nvevparos as
suggested by Bonitz.

2 Travra 0epou6i/a should perhaps be read.

BOOK XXIII. 5 932 ?

pool. And ships in the Straits of Messina suffer the same
fate owing to the flow of water, which causes eddies, and
are swallowed up into the abyss, for the reasons stated
above and also because the sea is deep and the land
cavernous to a great distance. The eddies, therefore, over
power the ships and carry them thither, and so no wreckage 10
is washed up. The flow occurs when, the former wind
having stopped, a contrary wind blows over the sea when
it is running under the impulse of the former wind, and
especially when the contrary wind is the south wind. For
the currents flowing against l one another try to thrust one
another aside, as happens in rivers, and eddies are formed.
And the original movement, which is strong, is borne 15
whirling round and round from above. Since then the
currents cannot travel laterally (for they are mutually
repelled), they must be thrust down into the depths, and
so whatever is caught by the eddy must necessarily be
carried down too. Hence they build ships with slanting
ends ; for cases have been recorded before now in which
a ship with straight ends has been swallowed up. 20

6 Why is the water whiter in the Black Sea than in the
Aegean 1 Is it owing to the refraction of the vision from
the sea into the air 1 For in the region of the Black Sea
the air is thick and white, so that the surface of the sea
appears to be similar, whereas in the Aegean it is blue, 25
because it is clear to a great distance, and so the sea too
reflecting the air appears to be similar. Or is it because
all lakes are more whitish than the sea, and the Black Sea
has the character of a lake because many rivers flow into it 1
Now lakes are whiter than the sea, and than rivers ; for 30
example, painters picture rivers as pale yellow and the sea
as blue. Or is it because the sight cannot penetrate quickly
through fresh water and is refracted into the air, 2 but is not

1 Reading dvTippfovra for avrurvfovTa. This change gives better
sense than Bonitz s change of nvev/j-ara for pevpsira.

- The text as it stands gives no satisfactory sense, and we must
read : r) on 8ia /zeV TOV iroTifiov (ou) $Lepx Tai Ta X^ "7 ^ ty > Kal ai>aK\arcu
Trpof TOV ae pa, ano 5e rfjy daXdcrarj^ OVT tiva> di/a/cXcmu 8ta TO pr) \flov aval
TO v8a>p, Kara> re KT\. This gives agreement with the doctrine of 11. 35-
37 and b 8, and, except for the insertion of the first negative (which

R 2

933 a PRORLEMATA

perishes before it becomes perceptible ; and so the wave is
not realty prior to the wind, but the former is noticeable,
while the latter is not. Or do the winds not blow every
where at the same time, but at first only in the quarter from
which they arise ? Now as soon as they begin to blow,
5 they set in motion the sea which is near them, and this sets
in motion the adjoining sea ; and thus it would be possible
for the wave to break forth before the wind reaches it. For
the movement is due to the sea and not to wind, being
a movement of the sea which travels more quickly than
that of the air. 1

Why is it easier to swim in the sea than in a river ? Is it 13
10 because the swimmer always leans on the water as he swims,
and we receive more support from that which is of a more
corporeal nature, 2 and sea water is more corporeal than
river water, for it is thicker and able to offer more resistance
to pressure ?

Why can one remain longer in the sea than in a river ? 14
15 Is it because river water is rare and therefore penetrates
more into the body and chokes one ?

Why is sea water combustible, while fresh water is not ? 3 15
Or does fresh water also burn, while the reason why sea
water has less power to extinguish fire is because it is of a
more fatty composition ? 4 (And that it is so is proved by

20 the fact that an oil is given off from sea water. 5 ) Or are the
interstices in sea water less able to adapt themselves to
fire because they are too wide, and all the more so owing
to the presence also of salt ? As, therefore, that which is
dry has less power to quench than that which is moist, so
that which is drier is proportionately more capable of being

25 burnt, one thing being more so than another, since the drier

1 Reading with Bonitz f) Kivrja-is, fj ddrrcav rov aepoy, 77 rrjs 0aAarrf/f,
which is equivalent to f} Kivrjcns f] TTJS 0a\aTTrjs } r) Bdrrcov ovara tj f/ TOV
aepos Kivrjcris.

2 Cp. Plut. Quaest. Conmv. i. 9, which appears to be a direct
reference to this passage.

3 Cp. chapter 32. 4 Cp. above, 932 b 4-

BOOK XXIII. 15 933 a

a thing" is the more closely allied is it to heat ; l and sea
water possesses both these qualities of dryness and heat to
a greater extent than fresh water.

16 Why is it that the wind blows cold in early morning from
rivers, but not from the sea ? 2 Is it because the sea extends
over open spaces, but rivers are in narrow places ? The
breeze, therefore, from the sea is dispersed over a wide area 30
and is consequently weak ; whereas the breeze from a river

is carried along in a mass and is stronger and therefore
naturally seems colder. Or is the reason other than this,
namely, that the rivers are cold, but the sea is neither hot
nor cold ? Now a breeze or an exhalation is due to the 35
heating or cooling of liquids ; for whichever of these two
processes they undergo, evaporation takes place, and, when
water evaporates, the resultant air is set in motion, and this
is a breeze. That which is produced from cold liquids
naturally blows cold, while that which blows from very hot 4
liquids cools and becomes cold. One would, therefore, find 933 b
that all the rivers are cold, but that the sea is neither very
hot nor very cold. That which blows from it, therefore, is
not cold, because it is not itself cold, nor does it cool quickly,
because it is not very hot.

17 Why do waves calm down more slowly in the wider open 5
sea than in shallow waters ? Is it because everything calms
down more slowly after much motion than after little ? Now
in the wide open sea the ebb and flow is greater than in
shallow waters ; there is, therefore, nothing strange if that
which is greater is more slow in calming down. 10

18 Why is it that salt water when it is cold is not drinkable,
but becomes more drinkable when it is heated, and when it
is heated and then cooled ? Is it because a thing naturally
changes from one opposite into the other ? Now drinkable 5
water is the opposite of salt water ; and, when salt water

is heated, the salt is boiled out, and, when it cools, is
precipitated.

1 Reading with Bonitz rcw eyyvrepv TOV despoil elvai TO grjporepov. rfj

rara

2 This problem occurs again in Book xxvi. chapter 30.

933 b PROBLEMATA

Why is it that waters near the sea are usually fresh and ig
not salty ? Is it because water which is allowed to percolate
becomes more drinkable, and the nearer water is to the sea
20 the more it percolates ?

Why does salt water not flow readily ? Is it because that 2(
which is heavy is stationary, and salt water is heavy ? Hence
only warm salt waters flow readily, for they have lightness
in them which prevails over the heaviness which is in their

25 saltness ; for that which is hot is lighter. Furthermore,
water which flows readily can percolate through the earth ;
and if water can percolate, the thickest and heaviest part of
it is always carried to the bottom, while the light and clean
element becomes separated. For salt water is heavy and

30 fresh water is light. And so flowing water is fresh. It is
for the same reason that salt water, when it is set in motion
and undergoes change, becomes fresher ; for it becomes
lighter and weaker owing to the motion.

Why is it that in Libya, if one digs a hole near the sea, 21
the water that first comes is drinkable, but afterwards

35 quickly becomes salty, but this happens less elsewhere ? l
Is it because the water which comes first is the water which
was already there and has been concocted by the earth, but
after a time the sea also percolates through 2 and, because it
has had no time to undergo any change, makes the water
more salty ? [Elsewhere, however, there is 3 either no water

4 o or abundant water, because the ground is not dried up.]

934 a Why does salt water melt salt more quickly than drinking 2!
water ? Is it because the process of melting anything is its
dissolution by moisture or heat penetrating into it so that it
becomes liquid ? Now those things do not cause melting
which either cannot penetrate at all or penetrate in such
a way as not to touch the substance. Those things which
5 pass through easily scarcely cause any melting, but those

1 Cp. chapter 37. 2 Reading Trpoo-Sujflov/iewj.

3 The Latin version of T. G. renders * aqua vel nulla est vel plurima ,
but e x can hardly be used thus intransitively by itself, and we must
either read OVK eon or else 6 ro-rros for TOV TOKOV. The sentence, how
ever, is quite out of place here and appears to have come in from
some other problem.

BOOK XXIII. 22 934

which enter in with violence dissolve substances very
quickly. Now those liquids which are composed of very
large particles do not penetrate, for they are too large for
the pores ; while those which are composed of small particles
pass through without touching. Now drinking water is
rare, while salt water is thicker ; and so the former, passing
through easily owing to its rarity, scarcely causes any 10
melting, whereas the latter penetrates, but percolates
through l to a less extent, because it is composed of larger
particles, and forces its way in more quickly.

23 Why does water appear less white when it is in motion,
for instance when there is a ripple ? Whence Homer says
that, when the wind begins to blow,

the sea grows blacker beneath it. 2 15

Are there two reasons ? Firstly, because, when the sight is
near to it, it can penetrate farther through the water when
it is still, but when it is in motion the sight cannot pass
directly through it. (And that which is transparent appears
white, for that through which the sight cannot pass is what
Homer calls black ; therefore the air appears black from
a distance but white near at hand, and the part of the sea 20
which is near is white, while that which is distant is blue
or black.) And, secondly, because, 3 when the sight is at
a distance and is subject in any way to disturbance, it is
refracted back in a mass towards the light, if the water is
still, 4 but cannot be refracted when it is in motion.

4 Why is it that the waves do not ripple in the deep, open 25
sea, but only on small expanses ? 5 Is it because a small
amount of water, as it is carried along, is more divided by
the air than a large amount ? Hence it beats more and is
broken up. Now in deep water the quantity which is set
in motion is great, but in shallow water it is small.

1 Reading Smppel for Staipet, which contradicts the doctrine of 11. 5, 6.

2 Iliad vii. 64.

3 Reading 6Vi TO for *m rw (C a , Y a , and AP read TO) to correspond
to the 6m TO duevai in 1. 16.

4 Placing a comma after ^pe/x/j.

5 A longer version of chapter I.

934 a PROBLEMATA

30 Why are the waters saltier in regions facing the south 25
wind ? Do they become mixed because the sea is driven
under the earth by the south wind ?

Why does the salty element in water come to the 26
surface more in sweet than in dry wine ? Is it because
35 sweet wine, like raisin wine, has more earth in it ? Or is it
because sweet wine is heavier and stickier and so mixes
less, and, as the wine does not mix 1 with the water, the salty
element comes to the surface ?

Why does the salty element, being earthy, float on the 27
surface at all (for its natural tendency is to sink) ? Is it 2
934 b owing to its heat, as happens with salt (for it resembles
an efflorescence) ? Or is there some other reason ? For if
it is for no other reason, 3 it is not unreasonable that it
should be for this reason that it floats specially on the
surface of sweet wine ; for that is the hottest of wines.

Why do the waves sometimes begin to move before the 28
5 winds reach them ? 4 Is it because they also cease to move
later ? For the first breath of wind as it were dies down
before the wave which has been impelled by it into motion ;
and it is not the wave which is first set in motion that
arrives, but there is a 5 successive impetus given to the
adjoining water.

Why is it that the ground where the waves break more 29
violently becomes solid, often to such an extent as to appear

! to have been artificially levelled, and why is the ground
where the waves break solid, whereas further from the sea
it is loose ? Is it because the fine sand is not cast up from
a long way off by the waves, but rather the coarser sand,
just as it is not possible to throw a very small object far
with the hand ? Then, many objects being mingled in

1 5 confusion, the smallest particles fall out 6 and form into
a mass, and the motion of the wave, as it recedes, levels

1 Reading fjuyvvpevov (W. D. R.).

2 Omitting on pa\\ov e^ei yrjv 6 y\vKvs ; J? with the best MSS. These
words obviously came in from the previous chapter.

s Placing a comma after ov and omitting that after /xaXXoi/.

4 Cp. chapters 2 and 12 above. 5 Omitting f] before 2><ns.

6 Reading eKTrinTovra ; the Latin version renders interlapsa.

BOOK XXIII. 29 934 1

them and no longer disturbs them. Since, then, the smallest
particles cannot leap far, a mass is formed of very small
objects ; and since it is in frequent motion, it becomes con
tinuous, the sand falling- in amongst it until it unites it
together ; it is then levelled by the last waves, and the 30
slight moisture causes it to adhere together. But the
ground farther from the sea, being dry, becomes disinte
grated, and is formed of larger pebbles and is unlevelled.

30 Why is it that the upper parts of the sea are saltier and
hotter than the depths ? So, too, in wells of drinking water 25
the upper water is saltier than that at the bottom ; yet
salty water, being heavier, ought to stand at a lower level.
Is it because the sun and the air always attract the lightest
part of liquid ? Now water which is suitable for drinking
is always lighter, and the sun can more easily attract it from
the part of the water nearest to it. And so that which is
left on the surface both of the sea and of drinking water is 30
saltier (since the fresh element has been extracted) than
that from which little or nothing has been withdrawn. For
this reason the upper part is also hotter ; for salt water is
hotter than drinking water. Therefore some of the followers
of Heraclitus declare that stones and earth are formed
from the drying and solidifying of fresh water 1 and that 35
the sun draws up vapours from the sea. 2

31 Why are the waters of the sea fresher which are nearer
the land ? Is it because they are more continuously in
motion ? Now salt water becomes fresher through motion.
Or is it because the w r ater is saltier in its depths, 3 and the 935
part of the sea near the land is less deep ? Wherefore also
water which shelves deeply near the shore is less fresh.
The reason of this is that the salty element being heavy is
carried down more into deep water.

2 Why is sea water the only kind of water that is com- 5
bustible, 4 whereas drinking water and river water are not ?
Is it because it has much earth in it, as is proved by the

1 Diels, Vorsokr. i. 3 p. 434, 5. 2 Cp. xxiv. n.

3 This directly contradicts the doctrine of chapter 30.

4 Cp. above, chapter 15.

935

PROBLEMATA

presence of the salt in it ? Or is it because it is of a fatty
composition, as is proved by the oil which forms on the
surface l of salt water ?

Why does sand not form in lakes, or at any rate less 33

10 than in the sea and in rivers ? Is it because rocks form in

the sea and the earth has been to a great extent burnt out

of them ? Now sand is rock which has been broken up into

small and minute particles, and it is broken up by the impetus

of the waves. But in lakes rocks free of earth are not

formed to the same extent, nor are they broken to the

15 same extent, because there are not waves to the same extent.

But sand is formed more in rivers, because they carry down

the earth and break up the rocks with their impetus.

Why is it that, when a lake either falls or dries up, the 34
corn in the adjoining 1 plain is more likely to be cut off
by frost ? Is it because the moisture in the lake evaporates

20 and warms the air with its vapour, and so makes the frosts
slighter and weaker than in hollow and marshy districts ?
Or is it from the earth, as men say, that the cold begins
and penetrates unnoticed ? If then the lake becomes dry,
owing to the larger space of earth greater cold attacks the

2 5 crops and freezes them and cuts them off to a greater
extent ; and on such ground the cold comes from below,
as is the popular belief. And yet the earth is warm in
winter ; but the surface heat which is in the earth, owing to
the fact that it is moist, becomes cooled, for the moisture is
neither so far in as not to be affected by cold, owing to the

3 heat which is present in liquids, nor so slight as to have no
force, since the earth is permeated with water. For instance,
owing to its becoming cold, one walks and lives upon ice.

35 Why is the sea salty and bitter ? Is it because the juices 3*
in the sea are numerous? For saltness and bitterness
appear at the same time.

Why do shells and stones which are in the sea become 3!
round ? Is it because the breaking off of their extremities

1 Reading e<j>iaTanevov with Y a and AP.

BOOK XXIII. 36 935 1

equally on every side causes them to assume a round form?
For this is the only shape in which the outer surface is the 935
same on all sides, and the sea by moving objects in every
direction breaks off their extremities equally.

37 Why is it that sometimes, if one digs a hole near the sea,
the first water which enters is drinkable but afterwards it
becomes salty ? l Is it because the water comes from the 5
sea itself which percolates under the earth ? The water
which first comes is, therefore, naturally fresh ; for fresh
water is lighter than salt water, and the sea has some fresh
ness in it, which mingling with the earth tends to come to
the surface. But the salt water, owing to its weight and to the
fact that it has power to penetrate, is carried downwards.
Whether this is so or whether the fresh water flows from ro
the mainland into the sea through the earth s veins, it
would naturally float on the surface of the sea which
mingles with it ; 2 but, the passages being opened, the salt
water, owing to its greater volume, subsequently prevails and
makes the whole sea salty. For if the passages are blocked
the result is that the inflowing salt water finds another way 15
higher up ; :j but when they are opened, it is all carried
there, just as happens in the veins in the body.

8 Why is it that the sea, which is heavier than fresh water,
is more transparent ? 4 Is it because of its fattier composi
tion ? Now oil poured on the surface of water makes it
more transparent, and the sea, having fat in it, is naturally 20
more transparent. Or is that which is lighter not always
more transparent also ? For oil itself is lighter than water
but not more transparent. Or is the sea not really more
transparent, but only apparently so ? For fresh water comes
from the earth or from streams, and its source sends forth
earth also with the water, so that the streams, not being 25
pure, bring down with them the earth and sediment. This
then is the reason why fresh water is less transparent.

1 Cp. above, chapter 21.

2 Reading avrw (W. D. R.) for avrfj.

s Reading with the MS. AP TO>I> rropwv avco.
4 Cp. above, chapter 8.

935 b PROBLEMATA

Why do the bowels of those who swim in the sea open 3<
readily ? For if it is because they take violent exercise,
those who run also take very violent exercise, yet their
30 bowels do not open. Or does not every form of exertion
cause the bowels to open, but only such exercise as does
not cause wasting ? Now staying in the sea seems to make
men, generally speaking, hungrier and opens the bowels ;
for the vapour given off by it is both hot and dry.

Why does the Lake of Paesus, 1 of which the water is 4
35 drinkable, wash and also remove the stains from garments ?
For water which is fresh washes, but that which is bitter
removes stains, and water cannot have both these qualities
at the same time. Are stains removed not because the
water is bitter, but by the quality of stickiness which has
this power ? Hence animals hoofs have this effect, and any
thing which contains gelatinous matter ; and so also any
936 a bitter substances .which partake of this character do the
same. Now in this lake it so happens that the bitter
element of the quality of soda has been burnt out, but the
fatty and sticky element remains. It is by virtue of this
that it removes stains, and it washes because it is fresh.

5 Why does the part of the sea which is calm appear white, j
while that which is agitated appears black ? Is it because
that which is less visible appears blacker, and water which
is in motion is less seen than that which is still ? Or is it
because that which is transparent is white, while that
which is not so is black, and that which is in motion is less
10 transparent ?

1 T. G. renders Traaa \invrj (which is omitted by Bonitz from his
Index) by Lacus Paesa, and we should probably read Ualcra XL/JLTT] here
with Sylburg. The reference then will be to a lake at Paesus on the
left bank of the Hellespont near Lampsacns. See Strabo, p. 589.

936

BOOK XXIV
PROBLEMS CONCERNING HOT WATER

1 WHY is it that, if one is anointed with oil, hot water
poured over one seems less hot, in spite of the fact that oil
contains heat ? Is it because owing to the smoothness
caused by the oil the water glides off and sinks in less ? 75

2 Why is it that in the summer the water in wells becomes
warm after midday ? Is it because by that hour the heat
has mastered the air, whereas before midday the heat is
dissolving and putting an end to the cold ; but the one does
not prevail as soon as the other has ceased, but only after 2 o
time has elapsed ?

3 Why is it that water, which sometimes becomes hotter
than a flame, does not burn wood, whereas the flame does
so ? l Is it because the flame, and the breath which conies
from it, consist of small particles, whereas water is made
up of large particles and so does not penetrate? Now
flame and the heat from coals owing to their rarity can 35
penetrate and destroy.

4 Why is it that boiling water has not the power to melt,
while the stomach possesses this power ? 2 Is it because the
heat which is in the stomach penetrates owing to its rarity,
whereas water cannot penetrate because of its density ? Or
is it because liquid prevents other things also from melting
(for nothing melts in liquid) ? In the stomach, however, the 30
liquid flows down into the bladder and so does not prevent
the process of melting. 3

5 Why is it that the bottom of a vessel containing boiling
water does not burn, but one can carry it holding it by the
bottom, whereas if the water be removed it burns ? Is it

1 Cp. Theophrastus, de Igne, 40. 2 Ib. t 45.

Reading ov KaXva for ouro> Auei.

936 a PROBLEMATA

because the heat as it is engendered in the bottom of the
35 vessel is extinguished by the water ? Wherefore also sub
stances which can be melted do not melt if any liquid is
added to them. 1

Why is it that water does not boil over so much in 6
winter as in summer, although heated not only up to the
same temperature but even higher, and although equally
936 b hot or even hotter ? 2 Is it because boiling over is due to
the rising of bubbles? The water then itself becomes just
as hot in winter as in summer, 3 but the bubbles cannot rise
to the same extent, because the surrounding air is cold, but
5 they rise smaller in size, being compressed by the cold, and
soon burst, being broken by the air. They are, therefore,
smaller in bulk and fewer in number in the winter, and the
contrary in summer. Now boiling over is due to the
number and size of the bubbles forming the froth.

10 Why does hot water cause wrinkles, but fire, though it is 7
hot, not do so ? Is it because fire produces breath and so
causes swelling (for it distends the skin), whereas it is the
curving of the skin which makes wrinkles ?

Why is it that the bottoms of vessels in which water is 8
being heated are hotter while the water is still cold ? 4 Is

J 5 it because, while the water is still cool, the heat is enclosed
and driven inwards, 5 being prevented from making its way
out, but, when the water in the vessel becomes thoroughly
heated, since the fire no longer holds the heat but expends
itself and becomes less, the bottom of the vessel becomes
cooler, just as a bath does ? For a bath is hotter in winter

20 than in summer, because the heat is more enclosed in
winter than in summer by the surrounding air which is
cold.

1 The words w \| $o? appear hopelessly corrupt, but the right sense
is given by T. G., who renders si quid humoris admittatur.

2 Punctuating, with Bonitz, ou \LOVQV 6fj.oi<os 6epfj.aiv6fj.evov dXXa KOI
/.taXXoj , Kai O/JLOLCOS 6fpfj.ov ov KCU en juaAXoi/. The source of this problem
is Theophrastus, de Igne, 16.

Readin with Bonitz Oepovs for

4 Cp. above, chapter 5.

5 For the doctrine of avTinepia-Tao-ts of heat and cold see note on
86; b 32.

BOOK XXIV. 9 936 1

9 Why is it that water when it boils does not form a
scum, as do pea-soup and lentil-soup ? And yet water is
lighter than these, and light substances ought to be able to
project themselves more easily to a distance. The same 25
thing 1 happens in the case of silver when it is being
purified ; for those who clean out the mint make gains by
appropriating the remnants, sweeping up the silver which
is scattered about. Is it because the heat causes the scum
by vaporizing and subjecting to force anything which
opposes its own natural impetus ? Water, therefore, owing 30
to its lightness and rarity is not subjected to force, and so
no great heat is collected in it, but the heat which con
tinually passes into it cuts its way through before it can
become massed together. But substances which have body
in them, like thick soups and silver, since, owing to their
weight, they contain much corporeal matter and offer resis- 35
tance, 2 because they are subjected to violent force as the
heat tries to make its way out, form bubbles wherever the
heat prevails ; for, owing to their density, the heat cannot
pass through them, but the density prevails until it is
thrown off by the heat which flows into it. The result is
a sudden impact, and not a continuous pressure, owing to the
heat passing up quickly from below.

:o Why, if substances are moistened in hot water for a 937 s
short time, do they swell, but, if for a long time, collapse
and become wrinkled ? Is it because the heat makes a
thing liquid instead of solid and produces breath from
liquid and rarefies what is dense ? At first, therefore, it
heats things which are solid and makes them moister, 5
and producing breath from the moisture distends and
swells them ; but when it heats them still more, it rarefies
their outer part; 5 so that the vapour is given off, and the
drying up of moisture causes their bulk to collapse. Now,
as anything collapses, its outer skin shrivels up, and where 10
it shrivels up unevenly, wrinkles are formed.
I Why are stones formed by hot water rather than by

1 Deleting the comma after TCIVTO.

2 Placing a comma after avraTr^Oovvra instead of after /3/a.

3 Putting the comma after dep^aivrj instead of after TO

937 a PROBLEMATA

cold ? Is it because a stone is produced from the failure of
moisture, and moisture fails more through the operation of
heat than of cold, in other words petrifaction is the result
15 of heat, as Empedocles says both rocks and stones come
into being through the action of 1 hot waters ? 2 Or, while
it is true that heat petrifies, can petrifaction also take place
through cold, because an extremely hard frost consumes
the moisture and causes hardening ? That cold, pure and
simple, 3 produces this effect is clear from the fact that its
excess does so.

20 Why is it that if one has one s foot in hot water, if the I
foot is kept still the water appears to be less hot, but hotter
if it is moved? Does the same thing happen as in the body,
viz. that, when one runs in the wind, the opposing air
becomes increasingly colder, and the farther one continues
to go 4 the more one notices it ?

25 Why do hot things cool off more in the sun than in the 1
shade ? Is it because the lesser heat is destroyed by the
greater ? 5 Or is it because in the shade the surrounding
cold represses the interior heat and does not allow it to
make its way out, producing the same effect as the pouring
of cold water produces upon those who are fainting 6 (for it

30 encloses the heat and prevents it from escaping) ; and
speaking generally the interior parts of anything are
warmer in the winter ? But in the sun, since there is
nothing which intercepts it, the heat is free to move and
vanishes more quickly.

Why is it that water heated by the sun is not more ,
35 wholesome for washing purposes ? 7 Is it because, owing to
the fact that it is cooling, it causes shivering while it is still

1 Reading Sta for KCU. 2 Diels, Vorsokr. i, 3 p. 211, 31.

3 For this use of ro drr\S)s cp. Top. v. I35 a 2, where it is opposed to

TO nd\l(TT(I.

4 Reading with Bonitz net lav for elaiwv.

5 This is the doctrine of nvp eVt n-Cp which occurs so often in the

Problems.

6 Cp. Theophrastus, de Igne, 15, where the word X
shows that we must read cKOvrjo-Kovtri, with Bussemaker, here for

Cp. below, chapter 15.

BOOK XXIV. 14 937 a

upon the body ? l Or, while it has this effect, is it unhealthy if
used often for washing? For hot water, generally speaking,
produces concoction and has a drying effect, whereas cold
water has an astringent effect, and so both do good.
Therefore cold water and water heated over a fire are both 937 b
beneficial to those who wash in them ; but water heated by
the sun owing to the weakness of its heat produces the
effect of neither of these, but merely has the effect of
moistening like the light of the moon. 2

15 Why is water which has been heated in the sun not 5
wholesome ? 3 Is it because that which is cooling causes
shivering ?

16 Why are the hot waters at Magnesia 4 and at Atarneus 5
drinkable ? Is it because more water pours into the hot
water as it flows out, and so its saltness disappears, but its
heat remains ? 10

17 Why is it that in Magnesia the hot waters ceased to be
hot but the water remained salty ? G Is it because more
cold water from elsewhere was poured at the same time
into the springs and extinguished the heat ? Now the
earth was salty, 7 but not hot owing to the abundance of 15
water flowing into it. (A similar process occurs in water

1 which is strained through hot ashes ; for the water being
e strained through the hot ashes cools the ashes and itself be-
: comes cold, but 8 is salty and bitter owing to the ashes.) But
c when the water which was added had become transformed,
the heat in the earth for a different reason prevailed over 20
the coldness of the water owing to its small volume, and
hot waters flowed again.

1 Reading dui TO ^/v^crQai KGU en eVi TOO (rco/^an 6V. The Latin
version of T. G. renders corpori adhuc insidens.

2 The light of the moon does not heat us because it is not hot
H enough.

3 Cp. above, chapter 14.

4 i.e. Magnesia on the Maeander ; cp. Strabo, p. 579.

5 On the west coast of Asia Minor opposite Lesbos. The fact that
Aristotle resided for a time at or near Atarneus makes it possible that
this problem is Aristotelian (cp. Frag. 625, 1583^0, 30).

The sense given by this problem as it stands is not clear and is

opposed to that of the preceding chapter.
7 Cp. Strabo, /. c. 8 Reading 8e w:

with C a (according to Bekker).
S 2

9 37 b PROBLEMATA

Why are waters from hot springs all salty ? Is it because 18
they usually percolate through earth which contains alum l
(as is shown by the smell of the water) and has been burnt ?
Now the ashes of anything are salty and smell of sulphur.
-5 The earth therefore burns the water like a thunderbolt.
Many hot springs therefore are due to strokes of thunder
bolts.

Why are hot bathing-places sacred ? Is it because they m
are due to two very sacred things, sulphur and the thunder
bolt ?

1 Or, perhaps, vitriol .

937 b

BOOK XXV

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH THE AIR 3

1 WHY is it that pain is caused if the limbs are enclosed in
inflated skins ? Is it due to the pressure of the air ? For
just as the air does not yield to pressure applied to the
skin from outside but repels it, so the air also presses upon
the limbs enclosed within. Or is it because the air is held 35
within by force and is compressed, and so, having naturally
an outward impetus in every direction, it presses against the
body enclosed within ?

2 Why is it that in marshes near rivers the so-called
1 bellowings take place, which according to the fable are
uttered : by the sacred bulls of the god ? That which is 938*
produced is certainly a noise which resembles the roaring

of a bull, so much so that it has the same effect on cows
when they hear it as the bellowing of a bull. Is it due to
the fact that this phenomenon always occurs wherever rivers
stagnate into marshes, 2 or are driven back by the sea, or 5
give forth wind in unusually large quantities ? The reason
is that hollows in the earth form, and the water making its
way in (for there is always a flow of water in marshy ground
of this kind) thrusts the air also through a narrow entrance
into a wider hollow, just as a noise like roaring is produced
if one makes a sound through the aperture into an empty 10
jar; for it is by a similarly shaped organ that a bull s
roaring is produced. Now, if the hollows have irregular
forms, a variety of strange noises is produced ; for if one
takes off the base 3 of a vessel and rubs it against the

1 Reading itvm (W. D. R.) for elvai. With the whole passage com
pare Meteor. 36 8 a 23 ff.

2 Omitting r) oaa e Ar; Xi/mifovrae, in which the plural verb with a
neuter plural subject and the change to the middle voice are suspicious,
and which is probably due to dittography of the preceding clause.

3 7rvvd<i{;, which by derivation is connected with TTV^/X^, TTU/LUITO? and
the Latin fundus can hardly mean lid (L. and S.), and must mean
base .

93 8 a PROBLEMATA

15 bottom, drawing it in and out, 1 it makes enough noise to
frighten away wild animals when orchard-watchers employ
this device.

Why does the air not become moist when it comes into 3
contact with water ? 2 For all other things become moist
when they touch water. Is it because the extremities of
the air and water meet, but the surface of each remains
20 distinct ? <<J All other things then are heavier, but the air
does not sink below the outer extremity of the water.
It therefore touches it, because there is nothing between
them ; but it does not become wet, because it always
remains above the water.

Why does calm weather occur most often at midnight 4
and at midday ? Is it because calm is immobility of the air,
and the air is most at rest when it either has the mastery or

2 5 is overmastered, and it is in movement when it is struggling ?
Now it has the mastery most at midnight and is over
mastered at midday ; for at the former time the sun is
farthest away and at the latter nearest at hand. Again,
the winds begin to blow either about dawn or about sunset ;
and the w r ind which blows at dawn dies down w r hen it is
overpowered, and that which blows at sunset dies down

30 when it ceases to have the mastery. Consequently the
former dies down at midday, the latter at midnight.

Why is it colder when dawn is breaking and it is already 5
early morning than at night, although the sun is nearer to
us ? 4 Is it because towards daybreak dew and hoar-frost
35 fall, and both of these are cold ? The whole ground then
being as it were sprinkled with cold moisture, a process ot
cooling takes place.

Why is it that in Pontus both intense cold and stifling g
heat occur ? Is it because of the thickness of the air ? 5

fl Tpi\l/ei Sta rov KaradrjfjictTos has been omitted as a gloss. The
word KaTaftrjfjia is otherwise unknown and is probably a corruption of
KardyfjiaTos (the break).
2 Cp. below, chapter 10.

Omitting ofy with Richards, op. /., p. 143, where see note.
* This problem is treated at greater length in Book viii, chapter 17.
5 Cp. above, Book xiv, chapter 13.

BOOK XXV. 6 93 8

For in the winter it cannot be thoroughly warmed, and in
the summer, when it is heated, it burns because it is thick.
It is for the same reason also that marshy regions are cold
in winter and hot in summer. Or is it because of the course
of the sun ? For in the winter it is far away, and in the
summer near at hand.

7 Why is the sky finer at night than by day ? Is the sun 5
the cause of wind and disturbance ? For these occur when
some movement takes place ; the cause therefore is the heat.
So, when the heat is not present, everything is at rest, and
there is more rest when the sun is rising than when it is
sinking. And the saying,

Have no fear of a cloud from the land, 1 10

means that, where there is most movement, there must be
least permanence and consistency, that which is trying to
hold together being inequable and unable to gain the
mastery. And this is what happens on the sea in winter
and on land in summer.

8 Why is it that when liquid which fills a jar is poured into
skins the jar not only holds the liquid and the skins as well 15
but also has room for more liquid ? Is it because there is
air present in the liquid ? This then, when it is in the
jar, cannot be given off owing to the size of the jar ; for
the larger anything is the more difficult it is to press any
moisture or air out of it, as can be seen in sponges. But
when it is divided up into small portions, it is pressed out 20
of the skin together with the air already there, 2 so that the
space occupied by the air becomes empty ; and so the jar
can hold the skins and additional liquid as well. This is
more especially the case with wine, because there is more
air in wine than in water. Similarly the same vessel can 25
hold the same quantities of ashes and water together as it
can hold of each poured in separately. For there are
apparently many empty spaces in ashes, and so the water,

1 The whole proverb is given at 947 a 7-9.

2 i. e. as the air in the skin is displaced by the liquid which is being
poured in, it makes its way out, taking with it any air that there may
be in the liquid.

938 b PROBLEMATA

being- thinner, 1 sinks in more and saturates the ashes, so
that they become dense, 2 because the saturation takes place
in one part after another (for a thing- always becomes more

30 thoroughly saturated if the process takes place little by little
than all at once), and, as this takes place, the ashes gradually
sink, at the same time absorbing the liquid because they
contain hollows. (But ashes thrown into water while still
hot cleave the water and cause it to evaporate.) And the
same thing happens if the water is poured in first and the

35 ashes put in afterwards, so that the water also would seem
to contain hollows and empty spaces. Or do the ashes take
up the water, and not the water the ashes ? For it is only
natural that that which is composed of smaller particles
should be that which finds its way into something else.
(Further, this can be illustrated by an experiment ; for
939 a when ashes are sprinkled water 3 is attracted to any spot
where they are sprinkled ; whereas the contrary would
have taken place if it were the water which takes up the
ashes.) Or does this process not occur if the water be
poured in first and fill the vessel to the brim, but, if any
thing then be added, does it overflow ? 4 But if the water
5 once overflows and the ashes settle down, 5 then it does occur ;
for it was the ashes which took up the water. There is
a parallel to this in the fact that trenches do not hold all
the earth which has been dug out of them ; for apparently
some air occupies the space excavated, and for this reason it
does not hold all the earth.

TO Why is it that, though air is denser than light, it can pass 9
through solids ? c Is it because light travels in a straight

1 Reading Xenrorfpov (oz/). 2 Omitting Kal after

3 Omitting AAo with AP.

4 The argument here is not very clear, but the meaning is apparently
something like the following : the fact that when ashes are dropped in
an absolutely full vessel the water overflows is no argument against
the theory that a vessel can hold the same quantity of water and ashes
together as it holds of each separately ; for the ashes when first put in
naturally cause an overflow, but, when they become saturated and
settle down, there is room left for the amount of water which has over
flowed, just as if earth is dug out of a trench and then replaced it takes
some time to settle down to its original level.

5 Reading vTronear) for fimrea-rj. The Latin version renders descen-
dent.

6 Cp. above, Bk. xi. 49 and 58.

BOOK XXV. 9 939

line only, and so the sight cannot see through porous sub
stances like pumice-stone, in which the pores are irregular,
whereas they are not so in glass ? The air, on the other
hand, is not obstructed, because it does not travel directly T 5
through anything through which it passes.

10 Why is it that the air becomes cold by touching water
but not moist, even though one blows so hard upon water
as to cause waves ? l That it becomes cold is clear from
the change which it undergoes ; for the air from water 2
causes cold. Is it because it is the nature of air to be cold
or hot, and it changes by touching anything with which it 20
comes into contact ; but it does not also become moist,
because it is too light and so never penetrates below the
level of the water, but always remains in contact only with
the surface, even though it be forced downwards, and the
water then recedes still lower, so that the air can never
penetrate into its depth ?

11 Why is the air from bubbles and the air which comes up 25
from beneath the water never wet ? Is it because the
moisture is not retained, but the water drops off? The
water on the surface of a bubble is also too little to moisten
anything.

12 Why is it that air cannot saturate anything, but water
can ? For water even when it is transformed into air is
moist. Is it for the same reason as that for which stone 30
cannot do so ? For everything has not this faculty of
saturating other things, but only that which is viscous or
liquid.

13 (Why is it that an inflated skin floats ?} :>> Is it because
the air in it is carried upwards ? For when the skin is
empty it sinks ; but when it is inflated, it remains on the
surface, because the air supports it. But if the air makes 35
it lighter and prevents it from sinking, why does a skin
become heavier when it is inflated ? And how is it that

1 Cp. above, chapter 3.

2 Reading (6) OTTO rcov v8uTa>v (Bonitz).

3 The statement of the problem has fallen out and must be supplied
from the Latin version of T. G. which reads : Cur utres inflati valeant
fluitare ?

939 a PROBLEMATA

when it is heavier it floats, and when it is lighter 1 it
sinks ?

Why is it that the air does not rise upwards ? 2 For if 14
939 b the winds are the result of air being moved by heat and it
is the nature of fire to rise upwards, the wind ought to
travel upwards, since that which sets it in motion .rushes
upwards and that which is set in motion has a natural
tendency to travel in the same direction. As a matter
of fact, however, the air obviously travels in an oblique
direction. 3

5 Why is the hour of dawn colder than the evening ? 4 15
Is it because the former is nearer to midnight and the
latter to midday ? Now midday is the hottest time, because
it is nearest to the sun, and midnight the coldest 5 for the
opposite reason.

Why is it that in hot weather the nights are more stifling 16
10 than the days ? Is it owing to the absence of wind ? For
the periodical winds and the forerunners blow less at
night.

Why is it that substances enclosed in inflated skins and 17
closely covered vessels remain uncorrupted ? 7 Is it because
things which are in motion become corrupt, and all things
that are full are without motion, and such skins and vessels
are full ?

r 5 Why is it that it is colder when the sky is clear than 18
when it is overcast, though the stars and the heaven are
warm ? 8 Is it because in clear weather there is nothing to
hold the vapour, but it is diffused everywhere, whereas in
cloudy weather it is contained ? 9 For the same reason it is
colder when the wind is in the North than when it is in the
South ; for the South wind attracts cloud, whereas the North

1 i. e. empty.

2 It is unnecessary to suppose with Klek that there is a lacuna in
the statement of this problem.

3 The explanation of this is given in Book xxvi, chapter 48, ad Jin.

4 Cp. above, chapter 5 and Book viii, 17. 5 Reading i/^pdrarai.
6 Cp. 946-15.

A shorter version of the problem already dealt with in xxii. 4.
8 Cp. below, chapter 21. 9 i. e. in the clouds.

BOOK XXV. 18 939 b

wind dispels it, and more evaporation appears to take place 20
when the wind is in the North than when it is in the South,
and in winter than in summer. Or is it because of dis
similarity ? Or because vapour is formed when that which
is hot cools ?

ig Why is it that a smaller amount of air is warmer than
a larger quantity (for confined spaces are always warmer) ?
Is it because a larger quantity is subjected to more motion, 25
and motion makes a thing cold ? This can be seen from
the fact that hot things become cold if set in motion.

20 Why is it that water and earth become corrupt, but air
and fire do not ? Is it because anything which is corrupted
must become hotter, 1 but there is nothing hotter than fire ? 2
Or is it because a thing must be chilled before it can be
corrupted, but fire is always hot and the air is full of fire ? 3
So nothing becomes corrupted when it is hot, but only
when it is chilled. Now earth and water 3 can become hot
and cold.

21 \Vhy is cloudy weather hotter than clear weather ? 4
Is it because, as the men of old said, the stars are cold ?
Or is this too absurd a doctrine, 5 and is the real reason that
in clear weather vaporization takes place ? That this is so 35
can be inferred from the fact that, when there is no wind,
dew and hoar-frost are formed. When , therefore, the weather

is clear, the hot substance, by which the moisture is taken
up, is blown about, and so the air becomes cold ; for which
reason also the moisture which the hot substance lets fall
forms dew. But when the weather is cloudy the moisture
is contained ; and therefore there is no dew or hoar-frost in
cloudy weather. The heat, therefore, remaining in the 94O a
neighbourhood of the earth makes the weather warm.

22 Why is it that in lofty rooms the air constantly ebbs and
flows, especially in calm weather ? Is it because the air

1 Reading dep^orepov for depfjunarov with Bonitz.

2 And since fire cannot become hotter, therefore it cannot become
corrupt.

3 Omitting KQ\ drjp with AP. 4 Cp. above, chapter 18.

5 The contrary doctrine, that the stars are hot, is assumed in 1. 16
above.

940 a PROBLEM ATA

5 contains much void in its composition ? When, therefore,
it begins to flow in, the air inside the room gives way and
contracts; and when in course of time this air becomes
massed together, the air outside becomes more full of voids
and contains much vacant space. Into this space then the
air from the room rushes, since it is near at hand, and

10 passes into it, because it is in suspense and the nature of the
void cannot resist. So when this happens in many parts of
it, the adjoining air follows it owing to the forward impetus j 1
and then, since a large quantity of air rushes out, 2 the space
within becomes full of voids, while the air outside is denser
and so rushes in again from outside. Thus these two

15 currents continually interchange.

1 Reading npoKo\lnv (W. D. R.) for

2 Reading eo> for

940*

BOOK XXVI

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH THE WINDS

I WHY does the North-East wind (Caecias) l alone of the
winds attract the clouds to itself ? 2 Is it because it blows
from higher regions ? For the parts towards the East are
higher than those towards the West, 3 as is shown by the

1 Caecias does not strictly speaking correspond with our NE. wind,
since the quadrants of the Greek compass were divided into three and

p

[ArgvlJ]

hraccas

CaecLas

c.ur\j*s W

E.ApeLLotes
(Heiiespon.tiCLs)

Chart of the winds to illustrate Problems^ Bk. xxvi.
[The names in square brackets are supplied from other treatises.]

not four sections as in a modern compass ; Caecias is, therefore, 30 and
not 45 north of the East wind. The chart of the Greek winds has
been dealt with by Professor D Arcy Thompson in C. R., xxxii, p. 49
(1918), who has independently come to the same conclusion as I had
previously formed in translating the de Mundo : he proves conclusively
that Kaibel and Capelle s wind-rose , which I had adopted when
translating the de Ventorum Sitibus, is wrong, but he was apparently
unaware that I had changed my view when translating the de Mundo.

2 Cp. chapter 29. The source of both problems is Theophrastus,
de Ventis, 37, 39 ; cp. also Meteor. 364 b 12.

3 i. e. the earth is conceived of as sloping gradually from E. to W.

94 o a PROBLEMATA

extent and depth of the sea towards the West. Now the
North-East wind (Caecias), blowing from above to a contrary
direction, describes in its course a line which follows an
upward curve in relation to the earth ; l and falling, as has
been said, 2 upon the western regions of the earth and
massing the clouds together as a result of the form of line

25 which it follows, on its return back it thrusts the clouds
before it towards itself. 3 It is the only one of all the winds
which does this, because for some the opposing regions
are higher, 4 towards which their course, either starting from 5
a lower level or proceeding in a straight line, as a result
travels in a downward curve 6 towards the earth, 7 so that

30 there can be no return of the wind to its source because it
ends its course round the earth, where, besides, there are
no clouds. 8 The East wind and the other winds which
follow a less curving course do not form clouds because
they have no moisture. Since, then, it forms no clouds,
the effect produced by the East wind is less obvious than
that produced by the North-East wind.

35 Why do the North winds occur at a fixed period of the 2
year, whereas the South winds do not ? 9 Or do South winds
occur annually but are they not continuous, because the
source of the South wind is far away from us, and we live

1 Reading Kvpra (T. G. has convexum) for <ol\a in order to give the
required sense and to agree with the doctrine of 943 b I . KoIXa and Kvpra
appear to have changed places here and in 1. 28. The meaning here is
that the NE. wind, descending from above, sweeps in a circular course
up into the sky and thence returns to the point from which it started.

2 Nothing has yet been said on this point.

3 i. e. to the point from which it started, e $ avrbv must be read for

6771 aVTOV.

4 Reading rots ptv v^Xorepovs TOVS evavTiovs elvat TOTTOVS (W. D. R.).

5 Inserting eV, omitted by error in the Teubner text, before rou

" Reading KoIAa (T. G. has devexus} for Kvpra ; see note on 1. 22.

7 Reading e^ovarav for CXOIHTJIS and deleting the comma after o-v^aivei.
T. G. renders quae versus, ut aut de imo aut e directo flatus feratur
devexus, t err am versus necessum sit.

8 Reading rco ?repi TTJV yr]v (cp. 943 a 37) *X flv T *l v TeXevr^i/ rrjs (popas,
fv w ovde vftprj eori (W. D. R.). The fact that the wind blows below
the cloud level gives an additional reason why it cannot form clouds.
TTfpl Tr)v y^ v appears to have been displaced from 1. 30 by an emblema
from 1. 29 and to have found its way into 1. 31.

9 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. ctt. t II.

BOOK XXVI. 2 94o a

close to the North wind ? Further, the annual North winds
blow when the air is still (for they blow in summer) ; 94O b
whereas the South winds occur in the spring, when the
region of the air is less stable. Again, the South wind is
moist, and the upper region of the atmosphere is unfavour
able to moisture ; so any moisture which is formed in it l is
quickly dissolved. Also moisture is erratic ; and so the
South wind, because it does not remain in the same place, 5
helps to set up changes in the movement of the air. And
since the air does not remain in the same place when it
moves, other winds are consequently set up ; for a wind is
a movement of air.

3 Why does the South wind blow after a hoar-frost ? 2 Is it
because hoar-frost occurs when concoction takes place,
and after concoction and cleansing a change to the opposite 10
condition takes place ? Now the South wind is the opposite
of the North wind. For the same reason also the South
wind blows after snow. In a word, both snow and hail
and rain and all such processes of cleansing are a sign of
concoction ; therefore after rain and similar storms the 15
winds fall.

4 Why do the alternating winds blow ? a Is it for the
same reason as causes the change of current in straits ?
For both sea and air are carried along until they flow ;
then, when the land-winds encounter opposition and can
no longer advance, because the source of their motion and 20
impetus is not strong, they retire in a contrary direction.

5 Why do the alternating winds come from the sea ? Is it
because the sea is close at hand? Or is it because the
alternating wind is the opposite of the land-wind and as it
were the reverse of it ? Now the land-wind is the breeze
which blows from the land towards the sea, and the
alternating wind is the reflux of the land-wind, so that it 25
must necessarily come from the sea. Or is it because 4 the

1 Reading with Bekker avru> for avrw.

2 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. ciL, 50.

3 This and the following problem are derived from Theophrastus,
op. cit., 26.

4 Reading r\ 5ia KrA., omitting 77 ^aXarra eVn.

94 o b PROBLEMATA

air which has been set in motion collects out at sea ? The
reason of its not collecting on land and of its being
thrown back l is the fact that the sea is in a hollow, and
air, like water, flows always into the deepest hollow it can
find.

30 Why do cloud- winds 2 stop sooner when rain falls ? Is it 6
because, when it rains, the hollows of the cloud, in which
the source of the wind is formed, collapse ?

Why are not the same winds everywhere rainy ? :} Is it 7
because the same winds do not everywhere blow against
35 mountains, but different winds are opposed to different
mountains ? For example, when the winds blow laboriously
against steep mountains, the clouds are more likely to form
there, since the wind cannot push them farther forward ;
and when the clouds form and are compressed, they burst.

94i a Why are sunsets, if they are clear, a sign of fine weather ; 8
if they are disturbed, a sign of stormy weather ? Is it
because a storm occurs when the air is dense and thick ?
When, therefore, the sun prevails, it breaks up and clears
the air; but, if it is itself overpowered, an overcast sky
5 results. If, therefore, the density is excessive, a storm
occurs as soon as the day dawns ; whereas if it is weaker
but not completely overpowered, the denseness which
forms is driven towards the setting sun and remains there,
because the air round the earth is thicker 4 than the
storm. And the rest of the air quickly densifies, because
a beginning of the process has already been made and
there is a rallying point to receive and collect anything
which comes to it, 5 the same thing occurring in the
air as happens in a rout, where, if one man makes a
stand, the rest also remain firm. Hence the sky some
times becomes quickly and suddenly overcast. When,

1C

1 Omitting dmov as a dittography of

2 Cp. de Mundo 394 b 17.

Cp. Theophrastus, op. cit., 5. This problem is more fully treated
in chapter 56.

* Reading Tra^urepoi/ for Tra^vTarov, the comparative and superlative
being frequently confused in the MSS.

5 Omitting the meaningless Kaddnep opdpos.

BOOK XXVI. 8 941

therefore, there is a disturbed sunset, it is a strong indica
tion that the sun has not got the mastery over the density, 15
though it has struggled long against it, so that probably l
further condensation has taken place. This is a less alarm
ing symptom when it occurs after a storm than in calm
weather ; for in the former circumstances it is probably the
remnant of a storm, but in the latter the beginning of
condensation.

9 What is the origin of the saying, 20

Boreas blows not at night when once the third sun

hath arisen ? 2

Is it because the breezes which come from the north are
weak when they blow at night ? A proof that the amount
of air which is set in motion is not great is the fact that
they blow at a time when there was a small amount of
heat ; and a small amount of heat was moving a small
amount of air. Now all things terminate in multiples of
three, 3 and things which are very small terminate at the 25
end of the first triad ; and that is what this wind does.

IO Why does the North wind blow more frequently than the
South wind ? 4 Is it because the North wind, being near the
inhabited portion of the world, attracts our notice in spite
of its short duration (for it is with us as soon as it begins to
blow), whereas the South wind does not reach us, because it 3
blows from a distance ?

II Why does the South wind blow as much 5 on winter
nights as on winter days ? Is it because during the night
the sun is near the southern region, and the nights there are
warmer than are the days in the north ? Much air, there
fore, is set in motion and not less than by day ; but the 35

1 Reading eiKos for

2 Cp. below, chapter 14. The source of both chapters is Theo-
phrastus, op. cit., 49.

3 Cp. tffe Caelo 268 a IO Kaddnep yap (pacri Kal ol Hvdayopeioi, TO Trav
KCI\ ra iravra rot? rpicr\v (Spiorai.

4 Cp. below, chapter 15, and Theophrastus, op. cit., 9.

5 Reading (ofy) rjrroz/, which is demanded by the logic of the
problem. Whereas North winds blow less at night than by day
(chapter 9), South winds blow at least as much by night as by day.

94 i a PROBLEMATA

warmer days prevent the wind from blowing more strongly
by drying up the moisture. 1

Why does the South wind blow at the time of the Dog- 12
star, and why does this happen regularly like any other
natural phenomenon ? 2 Is it because the southern regions
are warm, since the sun is not far 3 away, and so the evapora
tion is considerable ? The South winds would 4 blow fre-
94l b quently if it were not for the annual winds ; as it is, these
prevent their blowing. 5 Or is it because a sign occurs 6 at
the setting and rising of any star, and especially of the
Dog-star ? It is clear that winds blow most at the time of
and after its rising, and since it causes stifling heat, it is
5 only natural that the hottest winds should be set in motion
when it rises ; and the South wind is hot. And since things
are most accustomed to pass from contraries into contraries,
and the forerunners , 7 which are northern winds, blow
before the rising of the Dog-star, the South wind naturally
blows after the Dog-star appears, since a sign then occurs,

10 and the occurrence of a sign 8 at the time when stars rise
means a change in the air. Now all winds change either
into their contraries or into those on their right ; but since
the North wind cannot 9 change into the winds on its right,
the only thing left for it to do would be to change into
a South wind. Now on the fifteenth day after the winter

15 solstice the wind is in the south, because the solstice marks
as it were a fresh start and the sun sets in motion air which

1 Cp. Theophrastus, op. cit., 49, ad Jin.

2 The source of the first explanation offered is Theophrastus, op, cit., <
48. The problem is repeated in chapter 32.

3 Reading TOV rjXiov (ou) Trdppco OVTOS, cp. Theophrastus, /. <;., ainov
on depict TO. KUTOO, TOV f)\lov ndpovTos, oocrre -ytVerat TroAX?) arp-is.

4 Reading TroXXoi av eV^eov.

5 There should be a full stop in place of a comma after K.U>\VOVO-I.
The rest of this chapter occurs in the MSS. under chapter 32, whence
the editors have transferred it to this chapter as dealing with the same
problem.

6 o-rjpaivfi and eVto-^aiW (1. 9) are used impersonally as equivalent
to 0-rjp.flov e cm. The Latin signtficat has the same force, cp. Columella,
ix. 2 Siderum occasus tempestates facit, interdum tantum significat.

7 So called because they precede the Etesian winds (946 a 15).

8 Reading eVetS/} eVicr^/uaiVet p.V, eVtre AAoucn 8e rots ciarpois TO eVicr^-
ftaiveiv ecrri KT\.

9 Reading eViSe^iouy (ov) juera/SaAXei (Bonitz) ; the Latin version of
T. G. inserts the negative.

BOOK XXVI. 12 94 i b

is nearest to it 1 and at this solstice it is near the south.
Just as, therefore, when it sets the region of the east in
motion it stirs up the East winds, so when it sets in motion
the southern region it stirs up the South winds. It does
not do this immediately after the solstice, because the 20
changes which it sets up extend at first over a very small area,
but only on the fifteenth day, because this date corresponds
to the first sensible impression made by the change ; for the
said date is simply the most significant part of a whole.

13 Why are the days most changeable during the period
of Orion, and why is there then such variability in the 25
wind ? 2 Is it because during a period of change all things
are always most indeterminate, and Orion rises at the
beginning of autumn and sets in the winter, so that, since
there is not yet one settled season, but one is coming on
and the other coming to an end, the winds must therefore
necessarily be unsettled, because those of each season are 30
passing into one another ? And Orion is said to be
dangerous both in his setting and in his rising owing to
the uncertainty of the season ; for it must needs be full of
confusion and inconsistency.

14 Why does the North wind which blows at night cease on
the third day ? Is it because it comes from a small and 35
weak source and the third day marks the crisis ? or is it
because it expends itself all at once like the cloud-winds , 4
and therefore quickly dies down again ?

15 Why do the North winds blow more than the other
winds ? 5 Is it owing to the fact that the inhabited portion

of the earth is near the region of the north, which is high 942**
and outside the tropics and full of snow, which never
leaves some of the mountains ? As, therefore, frozen
matter is usually melting there, a wind often arises, and
this wind is the North wind which comes from the region
of the pole.

1 Reading <nd avrov for /car CLVTIJV (cp. 944 a 22).

2 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. cit,, 55.

3 Cp. above, chapter 9.

4 See above, 940" 30, and de Mundo, 394 b 17.

5 Cp. above, chapter 10.

T 2

94 2 a PROBLEMATA

5 Why do the South winds blow during winter and at the 16
beginning 1 of spring and the end of the autumn, 1 and why
are they boisterous and whirling in their course, and why
are they cold to the inhabitants of Libya in like manner as
the North winds are to us ? 2 Is it because, the sun being
near, the winds must necessarily be set in motion ? Now

10 during the winter the sun travels towards the south, and at
the beginning of the spring and at the end of autumn it is
giving forth heat ; whereas during the summer the sun
travels towards the north and leaves those other regions.
The South wind is hot, because it mingles its breath with
the air in the region of Libya, which is hot ; and so it is

1 5 boisterous 3 and makes the summer rainy, sweeping down
on the sea.

Why does the South wind cause evil odours ? Is it 17
because it makes bodies moist and hot, and they are then
most liable to corruption ? South winds, however, which
come from the sea are good for plants for the South wind
reaches the Thriasian Plain in Attica from the sea 4 and
so the reason is that it is cooled before it arrives. Now
mildew is caused by moisture which is hot and comes from
without.

Why does wind usually occur before eclipses, at nightfall 18
before midnight eclipses and at midnight before those
which occur at dawn ? Is it because the heat which comes
25 from the moon becomes faint, because its course is already
getting near the earth, and when it is quite near the eclipse
will take place ? Now when the heat, by which the air is
held back and kept still, is set free, the air begins to move
again and a wind springs up later in time according as the
eclipse is later. 5

1 Cp. Theophrastus, op. cit.^ 10.

2 This is dealt with in chapter 49.

3 Reading MeyaAoKi^toov (a^) (Platt).

4 Reading ex QaXarrrjs yap 6 IOTOS (forauroTs 1 ) TTpoo-TTtTrret Kal Trjs ATTiKrjs
r<w Gpiao-iw TTfdiV aiTiov 6 ort (for Sion) KT\. Unless 6 VOTOS is read for
airol? there is no subject for irpoo-niirrei ; cp. the Latin version, nam
et Thriasio campo terrae Attic tie auster de mart occurrit.

5 The sense (cp. above, 11. 23, 24 a.K.p6wxov . . , ru>v e coojy) demands
some such reading as o^nairepov, TTJS cKXcfyeas 6\lsiaiT(pov

BOOK XXVI. 19 942 a

19 Why is the South wind rainy not when it is beginning
but when it is ending ? l Is it because it collects the air 3
from a distance ? For the rain comes when the South wind
masses the air together, and it masses the air together only
after it begins to blow. Or is it because, when the South
wind begins to blow, the air is still hot, because it comes
from a hot region, but in course of time it becomes cool,
and then tends to become massed into rain ?

20 Why is it that the South wind, when it is less strong,
brings clear weather, but, when it is strong, brings clouds 35
and lasts longer ? 2 Is it, as some say, owing to the source
from which it comes ? For if it comes from a weaker
source it brings clear weather, but if it starts from a
stronger source it brings clouds. Or is it because it is
weaker when it begins, so that it does not propel much

air, but in the end it usually becomes strong ? Hence 942 b
comes the proverb,

W r hen the South wind begins and when Boreas ceases
his blowing."

21 Why is it that in the winter the winds come forth from the
east, but in the summer also from the west ? 4 Is it because,
when the sun no longer prevails, the air flows freely ? 5
When, therefore, the sun sinks, it leaves clouds behind it,
which cause the West winds, and anything which it carries
with it to the inhabitants of the southern hemisphere
becomes an East wind. And, contrariwise, when it sinks
in the southern region of the earth, it will cause West winds
for the inhabitants of that region and East winds in our
part of the world from the air which accompanies it. For 10
this reason too, if it finds another wind blowing, that wind
becomes stronger when the sun rises, because it adds some
thing to it.

1 Cp. Theophrastus, op. cit., 7.

2 Cp. below, chapter 38, and Theophrastus, op. tit., 6, 7.

3 The complete proverb is ev nXelv ap^op-evov, &c. ; cp. below,
945 a 29-

4 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. tit., 47. The
subject is treated more fully in chapter 54 below.

9 4 2 b PROBLEMATA

Why are hounds least able to find the scent when a West 22
wind is blowing ? Is it because it disperses the scent most
owing to the fact that of all the winds it blows most
15 continuously and down on to the earth ?

Why, when there are shooting stars, is it a sign of 23
wind ? l Is it because they are carried along by the wind,
and the wind occurs where they are, before it reaches us ?
For this reason also the wind rises in that quarter from
which the stars are set in motion.

20 Why is it that of all the winds the West wind drives the 24
largest clouds ? 2 Is it because it blows from the open sea
and over the deep, so that it collects clouds from a large
area ?

Why are the winds strongest which are at their ending ? 3 25
Is it because when they expend themselves all at once, what
remains is very little ? 4

25 Why is it that, if the South- West wind (Lips) 5 blows 26
about the time of the equinox, rain results ? Is it because
the sun sets the winds in motion from any part of the
universe in which it is ? Hence the succession of the winds
corresponds to the course of the sun. Now since the
equinox is the boundary between winter and summer,

30 when it happens that the sun, according to the equinox as
it appears to us, has passed the exact boundary or falls
short of it and is rather in the wintry region, the result is
that the winds from that region blow, of which the first is
the South- West wind (Lips), which is naturally moist. Now
when the sun is rather in the wintry region of the universe

35 and stirs up the winds there, the result is that the functions of
winter come into operation ; one of which is wet weather.
Again, since the equinox is as it were winter and summer

1 Cp. Theophrastus, op. cit., 36.

2 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. cit., 42.

3 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. cit., 36.

4 And therefore they come to an end. \onv6v should be read for the
icaningless 6epfj.6v from Theophrastus, /. c., orav yap aOpooi enTrvfva-aat,

meani

p.iKpov ylyverat TO AOITTOJ/.

5 Lips does not correspond exactly to our SW. wind, being 30 and
not 45 south of the West wind. See note on 94o a 18.

BOOK XXVI. 26 942 1

equally balanced, if anything is added to either one of
them it causes a distinct inclination in one direction, just
as happens in the case of equally balanced scales. But,
since the South-West wind (Lips) is of the wintry order 943
and naturally moist, its addition at the equinox causes an
inclination towards winter and rainy weather ; for rain is
the wintry weather most akin to the wind that has begun to
blow.

27 Why are the South wind and the South-East wind (Eu- 5
rus), 1 which are warmer than their respective contraries, the
North wind and the West wind, more rainy, although water
is engendered from the air by cold ? For it is not true
that the clouds form because the North wind thrusts them
away from our part of the world ; for the West and South-
East winds both alike for they are similarly at the sides of
the world 2 drive away clouds from the quarter from
which they blow, as also do all the other winds. Is it 10
because the more the heat exists outside, the more the cold
is driven within ? Or is it due in some degree to the
quarter from which they blow that certain winds bring
clear weather ? For the South-East wind rises from the
dawn (and the region is warm), while the West wind is
situated towards the evening. 15 But is there not a further
reason, namely, that air, like water, 4 cools most quickly and 15
thoroughly when it is previously heated ? The air then
brought by the South-East wind arrives warm from the
rising sun, as does that brought by the South wind from
the midday sun ; when, therefore, they reach the colder
region, they quickly condense and become massed into
rain. And the South-East wind has a greater tendency to

1 Eurus does not correspond exactly with our SE. wind, being only
30 south of the East wind (see note on 94o a 18).

2 TrAd-yioi is contrasted with tivaQev and Kara)dfv (north and south).
Cp. Meteor. 377 b 29.

3 Reading drr r]ovs e crnV rySe 8e 77 x^P a {^ e PP?)" 7rp s (^) eviTfpav
Kemu ^(pvpos. ?;<5e 77 x^P a can only refer to drr 7)01)9 ; it is therefore
impossible to take it with npos ecnrepav, which must belong to (e(pvpos.
We must therefore suppose that something has fallen out after fj8e Se
77 x&>p, apparently Ofppfi, cp. below, 1. 17. Something may similarly
have fallen out between KCU and e(pvpos. The Latin version of T. G.
simply renders, eurns nainque ex ortu^favonius ex occasu advent at.

4 Cp. Meteor. 348 b 30 ff.

943 a PROBLEMATA

so form rain, because it brings the air more directly from the
sun and equally hot ; but the South wind is rainy as it
ceases to blow, because the first air that is brought comes
cold from the sea, whereas the last air, which is very warm,
is brought 1 from the land. Or is there not a further
reason, namely, that the South wind is stronger as it ceases

25 to blow (hence the proverb applied to it, * When the South
wind begins . . . 2 ), and stronger winds are colder, and so
the South wind masses the clouds together at the end of its
duration? 3 Is not this why it is more rainy then than
when it first begins to blow ?

Why do the winds, though they are cold, cause dryness ? 28
Is it because the colder winds cause evaporation ? But
why should they do so more than the sun ? Is it because
30 they carry off the vapour, whereas the sun leaves it where
it is and consequently causes more moisture and less
dryness ?

Why does the North-East wind (Caecias) 4 alone of all the 29
winds attract the clouds towards itself, 5 as the proverb has
it, Drawing it to himself, as Caecias draws clouds 6 ? For
the other winds simply drive forward the clouds from
the quarter from which they blow. Is this phenomenon to
35 be attributed to the fact that the contrary wind blows at
the same time ? But would not this have been obvious,
and is it not more likely that the North-East wind naturally
follows a circular course ? The other winds therefore
943 b blow round the earth, but the North-East wind (Caecias) 7
has the concave side of its course towards the heavens and
not towards the earth, and so, blowing towards its source,
it attracts the clouds to itself.

Why is it that the wind blows cold in the early morn- 30
5 ing from rivers but not from the sea ? 8 Is it because the

1 Reading Ko//i ercu for K0juiei.

2 The complete hexameter is given at 945 a 29.

3 Cp. chapters 20 and 38.

4 See note on 94<D a 18. 5 Cp. above, chapter I.

6 Reading wore for the sake of the metre instead of&crnep, cp. Meteor.
364 b 13 (Nauck, Frag. Trag. Adesp. 50).

7 Reading TOVTW (W. D. R.) for TOVTO.

5 This problem also occurs in Book xxiii, chapter 16.

BOOK XXVI. 30 943

sea extends over open spaces, but rivers are in narrow
places ? The breeze, therefore, from the sea is dispersed
over a wide area and is consequently weak ; whereas the
breeze from a river is carried along in a mass and is
stronger and therefore naturally appears colder. Or is the
reason other than this, namely, that the rivers are cold, 10
but the sea is neither hot nor cold ? Now a breeze or
exhalation is due to the heating or cooling of liquids ; l
for whichever of these two processes they undergo,
evaporation takes place, and, when water evaporates, the
resultant air is set in motion, and this is a breeze. That
which is produced from cold liquids naturally blows cold, 15
while that which blows from very hot liquids cools and
becomes cold. 2 One would therefore find that all the rivers
are cold, but the sea is neither very hot nor very cold.
That which blows from it therefore is not cold, because the
sea is not itself very cold, nor does it cool quickly because 20
the sea is not very hot.

Why is the West wind always considered to bring fair
weather and to be the pleasantest of the winds ? 3 So, for
instance, Homer says that in the Elysian Plains

Ever the breezes blow of the Zephyr. 4
Is it because in the first place it has an equable tempera
ture ? For it is neither hot like the winds from the south
and east, nor cold like that from the north, but is 5 on the 25
boundary between the cold and the hot winds ; and, being
near to them both, it partakes of their qualities, and is
consequently temperate and breathes most of spring.
Furthermore, the winds change either into their contraries
or into those on their right ; G blowing therefore after the
North wind (for the west is on the right of the north 7 ), it 30
enjoys a good reputation, as being mild as compared with

1 Reading ^vx^p-evatv (rcov {rypcoy), cp. 933 a 36.

2 Cp. 943 a 15 and note.

3 The same problem is dealt with in chapter 55 below.

4 Horn. Od. iv. 567, where, however, the textus receptus reads

dXX alfl Ze(pvpoLO \iyv nveiovras drjTas
Q,Kfavos dvirjo iv.

5 Reading eWi for eVi, cp. 946 b 22. G Cp. 94i b 10.

7 This contradicts the doctrine of 94i b 12 as emended by Bonitz

943 b PROBLEMATA

an inclement wind. Also as soon as wintry weather ceases,
fine weather usually follows ; and the North wind is a
wintry wind. [The East wind, 1 though it lies between the
warm and the cold winds, partakes less of them ; for, when
35 it blows, it sets in motion the winds towards the south (for
when it changes it does so in that direction), but though it
sets them in motion it does not mingle with them. The
West wind is set in motion by the South winds, and when it
944 a blows it sets the North winds in motion ; for there the suc
cession of the winds ceases. Hence the West wind, consti
tuting as it does the end of some winds and the starting-point
of others, justly is and is considered to be a pleasant wind.]

Why does the South wind blow at the time of the Dog- 3 2
5 star ? 2 Is it because a sign occurs 3 at the setting or rising
of any star, and especially of the Dog-star ? It is clear then
that the wind blows most at the time of and after its rising.
And since it causes stifling heat, it is only natural that the
hottest winds should be set in motion when it rises ; and
the South wind is hot. And since, &c. (as 94i b 6-23).

10 Why does the West wind blow towards evening and not 33
in the early morning ? 4 Is the sun at its rising and setting
usually the cause of breezes ? For when it concocts and
dissolves the air, which is moist, by thoroughly heating it,
it dissolves it into breath ; and if the air is full of breath, it
becomes still more evaporated by the sun. When, there-

15 fore, the sun is in the east, it is far away from the West
wind, for the latter blows from the setting sun ; but when
the sun is already near its setting, the breath is then
thoroughly dissolved, and from midday onwards and
towards evening the sun is most suitably situated for
heating and dissolving the air. It is for this reason also

20 that the East wind begins to blow in the early morning ;
for since the air above the earth becomes charged with

1 The remainder of the chapter does not occur in the best MSS.
It certainly contradicts the doctrine just stated that winds change into
those on their right, and in general it does not give satisfactory sense.
The passage occurs again in chapter 55, where it is more relevant

2 Cp. above, chapter 12 and note. 3 See note on 94i b 2.
4 The same problem is treated in the first part of chapter 35 below.

BOOK XXVI. 33 944*

moisture during the night and owing to its weight
approaches the earth, the sun from dawn onwards dis
solves it and sets in motion first the air which is nearest to
itself. Now the East wind get its name Apeliotes because
it is the wind which blows from the rising sun. 1

34 Why is it that when the sun rises the winds both rise 25
and fall ? Is it because a wind is the movement either of
the air or of moisture carried up ? Now this movement,
when it is only slight, is quickly absorbed by the sun, so
that no wind occurs ; but when it is greater, the movement

is increased when the sun rises, for the sun is a source of
movement. 30

35 Why does the West wind blow in the evening ? 2 Is it
because all the winds blow when the sun disperses the
moisture ? For the moisture being already in a mass, the
power of heat, when it approaches it, concocts it. 3 Now the
West wind blows from the setting sun ; it is only natural
then that it should rise in the evening, for then the sun 35
reaches the quarter proper to that wind.

The North and the South winds are the most frequent of
winds, 4 because, when one contrary is overcome by its
direct contrary, it is least able to continue, 5 whereas it is
better able to resist a wind blowing against it from an
angle. Now the South and the North winds blow from 944 b
regions on either side of the sun s course, while the other
winds blow rather in a straight line with it.

36 Does the wind come from a source, as water does, and is
it unable to rise to a higher level than that source, or is this 5

1 i. e. the name Apeliotes is derived from dyro r]\iov.

2 Cp. above, chapter 33.

3 Reading eWeVrfi (cp. above, u, 12, 13) for the meaningless

4 The latter part of the chapter deals with quite a different subject
from the former portion. It is, indeed, quite possible that the Latin
version of T. G., which renders, C^lr aquilo et auster saepissime
spirant ? An quia, &c.. translates a better reading, and that a new
problem should begin here : Why are the North and the South winds
the most frequent of all the winds ? Is it because, c.

5 And passes into its contrary, e. g. the North wind becomes the
South wind and vice versa (cp. above, 94i b 10 ff.).

G Cp. Theophrastus, op. cit.> 2.

944

b PROBLEMATA

not so ? And does it come from a single point or from
a wider area ? There are indeed in the wind certain
similarities to that which seems to occur in water ; for
water flows faster when it travels downhill, whereas it
stagnates on flat and level 1 ground, and the winds act

10 similarly, for on promontories and high ground the air is
always in motion, whereas in hollows it is often at rest and
there is a calm. Moreover on exceedingly high mountains
there is no wind at all on Mount Athos, for example,
amongst others, as is proved by the fact that offerings
which persons sacrificing leave there one year are, so it is

15 said, found there still in the following year. It is clear then
that the course of the wind starts as it were from a source of
some kind. 2 It cannot, therefore, rise any higher. Hence
the above phenomenon occurs on high mountains, to which
what happens to water would be a close parallel ; for
apparently neither a strong flow of water nor a violent

20 wind is found in high mountains.

Why is it that when the South wind blows the sea 37
becomes blue, but when the North wind blows it becomes
dark ? 3 Is it because the North wind disturbs the sea less,
and that which is less disturbed appears to be all black ?

25 Why do the South winds when they blow gently cause 38
no overclouding, but when they become strong overcloud
the sky ? 4 Is it because, when they blow gently, they
cannot thrust many clouds along ? 5 They therefore cover
only a small area with cloud ; but, when they blow strongly,
they thrust along many clouds, and therefore seem to cause
more overclouding.

30 Why is the North wind strong when it begins to blow, QQ
but weak as it ceases, whereas the South wind is weak when
it begins, but strong as it ceases ? Is it because the North
wind is near to us and the South wind distant ? The former
then, when it begins, blows immediately in one part of the

1 Reading 6/zaXw with X a , AP. 2 Cp. Meteor. 360* 27.

3 This problem is translated word for word by Aulus Gellius, ii. 30,
as from Aristotle s Books of Problems. 4 Cp. above, chapter 20.

5 Reading awQiw (W. D. R.) for Tromv ; cp. 1. 29.

6 Cp. below, chapters 41 and 45, and Theophrastus, op. cit., 5.

BOOK XXVI. 39 944

world, whereas the beginning of the latter becomes dispersed
owing to the long time it takes to travel, and little of its 35
first breath reaches us ; and we feel the end of the North
wind, but that of the South wind not at all. It is, therefore,
only natural that the North wind should be weak as it ceases
(for the end of all things is weak), while the South wind is
not weak at its close, since we do not feel its ending at all.

40 Why do alternating winds blow where there are bays, 945*
but not where there is a \vide expanse of open sea ? Is it
because the wind, when it pours into the bays, is less broken

up and travels practically in a collected mass, whereas over
open expanses of sea the land-winds tend to be broken up 5
as they begin to flow, and when they move the same thing
happens to them, because they are free to travel in many
directions? For an alternating wind is the reflux of a
land-wind. 1

41 What is the origin of the saying,

When the South wind begins and when Boreas ceases

his blowing ? 2

Is it because the North wind, owing to the fact that we live
near it and our habitation is towards the pole, immediately 10
blows strongly, for it is with us as soon as it begins ? Hence,
as it ceases, it blows pleasantly ; for it then blows weakly.
The South wind, on the other hand, because it is far away,
reaches us later in greater strength.

4 2 Why is it that men feel heavier and weaker when the
wind is in the south ? :! Is it because moisture becomes
abundant instead of scanty, being melted by the heat, and 15
moisture, which is heavy, takes the place of breath, which

is light, and under these conditions men s strength becomes
languid ?

43 Why are men hungrier when the wind is in the north
than when it is in the south ? Is it because the North
winds are colder ?

1 Reading airoyias (W. D. R.).

2 Cp. chapters 39 and 45. The complete proverb is eu TrXel
&c. (cp. 1. 29).

3 A longer version of this problem occurs in Book i. 24.

945 a PROBLEMATA

Why does the South wind not blow in Egypt itself in 44

20 the regions towards the sea nor for the distance of a day

and a night s journey inland, 1 while in the regions beyond

Memphis and for the distance of a day and a night s journey

it blows freshly ; and does not blow to the west for the

distance of two days and two nights journey, while to the

east the South-West wind (Lips) 2 blows ? Is it because

Egypt in its lower regions is hollow, so the South wind

25 passes over above it, but to the south and farther away the

regions are loftier ?

Why is it that the South wind is weak when it begins 45
to blow, but becomes stronger as it ceases, while with the
North wind the contrary is the case , hence the proverb,

Sail when the South wind begins and when Boreas
ceases his blowing ? 3

30 Is it because we dwell rather towards the pole than towards
the midday sun, and the North wind blows from the pole,
while the South wind blows from the midday sun ? It is
only natural, therefore, that the North wind, when it
begins, immediately attacks with violence the regions
nearer to it, and afterwards transfers its violence to the
dwellers farther south. The South wind, on the contrary,

35 when it begins, presses upon those who dwell towards the
midday sun, and, when it has passed them by, blows freshly
upon those who dwell towards the pole.

What is the origin of the saying, -g

Straightway the winter comes, if the South wind call
to the North wind ? 4

Is it because it is the nature of the South wind to collect 5

clouds and much rain ? \Vhen therefore the North wind

945 b blows under these conditions, since there is abundant

1 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. cit., 8.

2 Lips is strictly speaking slightly to the north of the SW. wind,
being only 30 south of the West wind, see note on 940* 18.

3 Cf. above, chapters 39 and 41. There should be a question mark
after /3opeao in place of a comma.

4 Cp. Theophrastus, op. cit., 46.

6 Reading o-vvaipelv ; T. G. renders colligat.

BOOK XXVI. 46 945

material, the North wind freezes it and brings on the
winter. Hence the saying 1 ,

When Boreas fmdeth the mire, soon cometh the season
of winter.

Now mud and rain in general are usually, if not invariably,
due to the South wind.

47 Why does the North wind follow quickly upon the South 5
wind, but not the South wind upon the North wind ? l Is it
because the North wind arrives from near at hand, but the
South wind from a distance, since our habitation is towards
the pole ?

48 Why is it that the winds are cold, although they are due
to movement caused by heat ? 2 Is movement caused by
heat not invariably hot, but only when it occurs in a certain 10
manner ? If it comes forth 3 in a mass, it burns with its heat
the very thing which emits it ; but if it passes out gradually
through a narrow space, it is itself hot, but the air which is
set in motion by this process completes the movement in
accordance with whatever was its original nature. 4 This
can be seen in the mouth ; 5 for there is a saying that from 15
the same organ we breathe both hot and cold, 6 but this is
untrue, since all that proceeds from the mouth is hot, as is
shown by the fact that it appears hot if the hand is placed
close to the mouth. It is the manner in which it comes
forth which makes the difference. For if in yawning we
emit breath from a wide opening, it appears hot because
we can feel it ; but if it be emitted through a narrow
opening, being more violent, it impels the air in its imme- 2 o
diate neighbourhood, which in its turn impels the adjoining
air. If the air is cold, its movement is also cold. May not
the same thing happen also in the winds, and their first
movement be through a narrow channel and then set in

1 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. /., 9.

2 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. cit., 19-20.

3 Reading, with Theophrastus, e /cTrtVr/; for e^ 71 " 71 " 7 "//-

4 i. e. temperature.

5 Reading O-TO AI^TO? for o-co^aros- (cp. Theoph. 20).

6 Cp. Aesop, Fab. 64 (ed. Halm).

945 b PROBLEMATA

motion 1 the adjoining air, and then other air begin to rush
onwards ? So in the summer the winds are hot, in winter

35 they are cold, because in each case this is the temperature
of the air which is already there ; for that the air does not
follow this course because it is either set in motion by itself
or overpowered by the heat, is clear not only from the fact
that it heats the winds when there is more heat in it, but
also because it was originally being carried upwards. For

30 fire is of this nature ; whereas cold naturally travels down
wards. The winds move horizontally and for good reason ;
for since the heat presses upwards and the cold downwards
and neither prevails, and the air cannot remain still, it is
only natural 2 that its motion should be sideways.

35 Why are the South winds cold in Libya as the North winds 49
are with us ? 3 Is it primarily because the sources of these
winds are respectively nearer to us and to them ? For if,
as we have already said, 4 the winds pass through a narrow
channel, they will be colder to those who are nearer to
them owing to the violence of their movement; for when
their movement proceeds farther, they become dispersed.
Hence the North winds are cold in our part of the world,
because we are nearer to them and dwell quite near the
pole.

Why is it that those South winds which are dry and do 50
5 not bring rain cause fever ? 5 Is it because they engender
unnatural moist heat in the body ? For they are by nature
moist and hot, and this causes fever, which is due to a
combined excess of these two things. When, therefore, the
South winds blow under the influence of the sun without
bringing rain, they engender this condition in us ; c whereas,
when they bring rain with them, the rain cools us.

1 For this meaning of Siafapa) cp. Soph. Track. 323.

2 Reading tiKos for eiKorwr, cp. 941 a 1 6 and note.

I Cp. 942*7. * inn. 22 ff. above.

5 This chapter (the source of which is Theophrastus, op. cit., 7) is
partly identical with i. 23,

^ Reading raurqi/ r^u Siddea-iv TTOLOVOL (from 862 a 2i) for the corrupt

TUVTTJV TT]V TCL^lV.

BOOK XXVI. 51 946*

51 Why do the periodical winds always blow at the season TO
at which they do blow l and with the force with which they
blow ? 2 And why do they cease at close of day and not
blow during the night ? Is this due to the fact that the
melting of snow by the sun ceases towards evening and at
night ? Now these winds blow in general when the sun
begins to prevail and melt the northern ice. When the ice 15
begins to melt, the forerunners blow ; when it is already
melting, the periodic winds blow.

52 Why is the West wind at once the gentlest of winds and
also cold, and why does it blow mainly at two seasons,
namely, spring and autumn, and towards evening, and
usually in the direction of the land ? 3 Is it cold because it 20
blows from the sea and from extended areas ? It is less
cold indeed than the North wind, because it blows from
evaporated water and not from snow ; but it is cold, because
it blows either after the winter, when the sun is only just
beginning to prevail, or in the autumn, when the sun no
longer has power. For it does not have to wait for its
proper matter, 4 as it would if it were a land-wind, but 25
wanders freely, because it has travelled over water. 5 For
the same reason it blows evenly ; for it does not blow from
mountains or from forcibly melted matter, but flowing
gently as through a channel. For the regions towards the
north and south are mountainous ; but towards the west
there is neither mountain nor land but the Atlantic Sea,
so that it travels in the direction of the land. Further, it 3
blows towards evening owing to the quarter from which
it comes ; for the sun then approaches that quarter. It
ceases at night because the movement set up by the sun
dies down.

1 The form ravr^v, which Ruelle reads, does not exist ; the MSS.
read ra^r^v.

2 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. cit., n.

8 The source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. cit., 38, 40, 41.

4 Reading uA^, cp. 947 a 2, 3. The lacuna in Theophrastus, op. ctt.,
40 ad fin. (ed. Wimmer), can be filled from this passage, viz. ou yap
cotTTrep v yfj (inrop-evei rrjv vXr)^ dAAa KT\,

5 i. e. where there is evaporation everywhere going on, and therefore
matter for wind.

645-25 TJ

94 6 a PROBLEMATA

Why do all things appear larger when the South-East 53
wind (Eurus) 1 blows? 2 Is it because it makes the air
gloomier ? 3

35 Why is it that during the winter the winds blow early 54
and from the east, but in summer in the evening and from
the setting sun ? 4 Is it because what happens in our part
of the world during the summer occurs during the winter
among those who inhabit the opposite hemisphere of the
earth, and with us in the winter the winds blow early and
from the east, because the air, which during the night is
Q46 b full of moisture, 5 is dissolved and set in motion by the sun
in the early morning, the air nearest the sun being the first
to be affected ? The sun begins to produce this effect even
before it rises ; therefore the breezes blow just as much
before sunrise. Since then the sun attracts the moisture to
5 itself and in the winter before its rising sets in motion in
our part of the earth the air which is moist, it is clear that
it would also attract the moisture when it is in the southern
hemisphere, and it would be evening there when it is early
morning with us. The result would be that the air, which
the sun attracts to itself before its rising in our part of the
world, would become a West wind to the dwellers in the

I0 south and would blow in the evening. Now what happens
during our winter at dawn happens to them in the evening,
and what happens in the summer to them at dawn happens
to us in the evening ; 6 for when it is summer here, it is
winter there, and our evening is their early morning, at
which time they have breezes from the east, 7 while we have

15 West winds for the same reasons as are mentioned above.
In the summer breezes do not blow from the east, because
the sun, when it rises, finds the air in our part of the earth
still too dry, owing to the short period of its absence ; and

1 See note on 943* 5. 2 Reading TTV^ for irvcl.

8 Reading o<t><adforepov (Platt). 4 Cp. above, chapter 21.

6 Reading ndtivypov (6Wa) (Richards).

6 The sentence as it stands in the text is clearly incomplete, and
something like the following must be read : 6 de lv ro> Trap fjn&v

TTJS ceo, eKeivots \Trjs SeiA?/?} arunfiaivti o 8e ev r<w Bepci (TIJS eo> C
TJJS 8ei\t)s rjfJiiv.

7 Reading ca> for e co

BOOK XXVI. 54 946 1

West winds do not blow in the evening during the
winter, because East winds do not blow in the southern
hemisphere either at that time for the aforesaid reasons, in
virtue of which the sun attracts the moisture to itself and 2 o
produces l the West wind in our part of the earth.

55 Why is the West wind always considered to bring fair
weather and to be the pleasantest of the winds? 2 Is it
because it is on the boundary between the hot and the cold
winds, and being near to them both it partakes of their
qualities, and is therefore temperate ? The East wind,
though it also lies between the hot and the cold winds, 25
partakes less of them ; for when it blows it sets in motion
the winds towards the south (for, when it changes, it does
so in that direction), but, though it sets them in motion, it
does not mingle with them. The West wind is set in motion
by the South winds and, when it blows, it sets the North
winds in motion ; for there the succession of the winds
ceases. Hence the West wind, constituting as it does the 30
end of some winds and the starting-point of others, justly is
and is considered to be a pleasant wind.

56 Why are different winds rainy in different places ; 3 for
example. Hellespontias 4 (the East wind) in Attica and the
islands, the North wind on the Hellespont and in Cyrene,
and the South wind round Lesbos ? Is it because rain
occurs wherever there is a collection of clouds, since density 35
collects wherever it can settle ? It is for this reason that
there is more rain among the mountains than where the
mass of clouds can find a free passage, for that which is
confined becomes dense as a necessary consequence ; also
it rains more in calm weather. In the Hellespont the North
wind, blowing from its upper end, masses together many 947**
clouds, which Hellespontias (the East wind) drives towards
Attica and the islands, being thus provided with ample
material ; for most clouds come round from the north.

should perhaps be read here for noiel, for the sun to attract
the moisture to itself and cause , &c.

2 This chapter is a shorter version of chapter 31 above.

3 A longer version of chapter 7.

4 Another name for Apeliotes, cp. Vent. Sit. 973* 22.

U 2

947 a PROBLEMATA

Round Lesbos the South- East (Eurus) l and South winds
5 bring much cloud from the open sea and drive 2 it against
the land. Similar instances might be quoted for the other
winds.

What is the origin of the saying, 57

Have no fear of a cloud from the land in the season of

winter,
Bu if it come from over the deep have a care ; and in

summer
Ever distrust the cloud that sweeps from the gloom of

the mainland ? y

Is it because in the winter the sea is warmer, so that, if any
10 cloud has formed, it must have done so from some powerful
cause, otherwise it would have been dissolved, because the
region in which it forms is warm ? Now in the summer
the sea is cold, as also are the sea breezes, but the land is
hot, so that if any cloud comes from the land, it must have
been formed from some considerable cause ; for it would
have been dissolved if it had been weak.

15 Why is it that in Arcadia, which is high, the winds are 58
no colder than elsewhere, but when there is no w r ind and it
is cloudy, it is cold, just as it is in flat, marshy districts ?
Is it because Arcadia resembles a marshy district, since it
has no outlet for its waters to the sea, for which reason also

20 there are many chasms there ? When, therefore, there is
a wind, it winnows away the exhalations from the earth,
which are cold, but the winds themselves are not cold,
because they arrive from the sea ; but when there is no
wind the vapour which rises from the stagnant water
causes the cold.

35 Why is it that the wind lasts a long time when it begins 59
to blow at dawn ? Is it because, when the sun rises, the
impetus given to the wind is very violent and can therefore
maintain its character? That this is so is shown by the
fact that it forms a strong mass.

1 See note on 946* 33. 2 Reading with Sylburg Trpocr/SaXXovtri.

3 ^The ^source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. tit., 60, where
us arrb novrov should be emended a\\ anb TTOVTOV. Cp. 938^ IO.

BOOK XXVI. 60 947 a

60 Why is it that the North wind is keen during the day
but falls at night ? Is it because it is generated from frozen
rain when this is evaporated by the sun ? It falls at night, 30
because the process does not go on as before, but is re
versed ; for at night the North wind expends itself, 1 but it
is less apt to do so during the day.

61 Why is it that when many spiders webs 2 are borne
through the air, they are a sign of wind ? Is it because
the spider works in fine weather, but the webs are set in 35
motion because the air, as it cools, collects on the ground,
and this cooling process is the beginning of winter, so that
the movement of the webs is a sign ? Or is it because
after rain and storms the spiders ! are borne through the
air in large numbers, since they work in fine weather (for
they do not appear at all in the winter, the spider being

an animal 4 which cannot support the cold), and as they are 947
borne along by the wind they unwind a quantity of web ?
Now after rain winds usually blow.

62 Why is it that the strong North winds r< in winter cause
clouds in the cold regions, but outside them bring a clear 5
sky ? fi Is it because they are at the same time cold and
strong, and in the regions near the north they are colder
and so congeal the clouds before they can drive them along,
and the clouds, when they are congealed, remain where
they are owing to their weight ? Elsewhere, however, it
is their strength rather than their coldness which takes
effect.

1 For this meaning of e /c7iWo> cp. 942** 24, and the similar use of
94 1 b 36.

2 . e. gossamers.

3 Reading apo^wi/ for apaxviuv. Though apa^/oy is frequently used
in the sense of a small spider , in this passage it seems always
to mean spider s web , and apa\vu>v must be read to agree with
fpyao[jievo)v and to provide a masculine plural to which (pepo/jeyoi may
refer,

4 Reading TO drjptov for roSe (Bonitz).

5 Reading 01 /3operu (ot) /MfyaXot.

J The source of this problem is Theophrastus, op. tit., 6, 7.

947 b

BOOK XXVII

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH FEAR
AND COURAGE

WHY do those who are afraid tremble P 1 Is it due to the I
process of chilling ? For the heat fails and contracts ; that
is also why the bowels usually are loosened. 2

15 Why do men become thirsty under certain conditions, 2
those, for example, who are about to be punished? 3 For
this ought not to be so, since they are chilled. Is it because
the chilling and heating do not occur in the same region,
but the former takes place on the surface of the body, from
which the heat departs, but the heating takes place in the
interior, so that it warms it, as is proved by the fact that
the bowels become loosened ? For thirst occurs when

20 the sovereign region 4 of the body becomes dry. The same
thing seems to happen as occurs in those suffering from
ague, 5 who are thirsty and cold at the same time ; for in
their case too the same part of the body is not hot and cold.

Why is it that under the influence of anger men become 3
heated and bold (the heat collecting in the interior of the
body), whereas in a state of fear they are in a contrary
25 condition ? Is it because they are not affected in the same
region, but in those who are angry the heat collects in the
region of the heart hence they become courageous and
red in the face and full of breath the course of the heat
being upwards, whereas in those w r ho are afraid the blood
and heat both retreat in a downward direction hence the
bowels become loosened. For the beating of the heart is

1 This problem is dealt with more fully in chapters 6 and 7.

See below, chapter 10. 3 Cp. below, chapter 8.

* The region in which the most important organs are situated ; cp.
Kvpia nopta, Gen. An. 744 b 31.

B The exact nature of this disease is doubtful; see W. H. S. Jones,
Malaria, a Neglected Factor in the History of Greece and Rome,
PP- 25, 36, 37.

BOOK XXVII. 3 947 b

different, since in those who are frightened it is frequent and 3
strongly punctuated, as would naturally occur from the
failure of heat, while in those who are angry it has the
character which one would expect when a greater quantity
of heat collects. Hence the expressions about anger boil
ing up and rising and being stirred up and the like
are apt and fitting. Is the thirst also due to this cause,
since dry-spitting and the parching of the tongue and the 35
like are due to the simultaneous upward rush of breath
and heat? Thirst, moreover, is clearly due to the body
becoming heated. How then can the same region, namely,
that in which we feel thirst, become dried up both in one
who is afraid and in one who is angry ? That fear tends
to produce thirst is clearly shown in the case of routed 948*
soldiers ; for under no other condition is such thirst ex
perienced. The same is true of those suffering from great
anxiety ; therefore they wash out their mouths and swallow
liquid, as did Parmenon the actor. Or is it in such cases
not thirst but dryness due to the flight of blood (whence
also they become pale) ? This is indicated by the fact that 5
they do not drink much but simply take a gulp ; routed
soldiers on the other hand are undergoing violent exer
tion. 1 So those who are about to be punished feel thirst,
and in this there is nothing strange. In war some brave
men even, when they are drawn up in battle array, actually
tremble when they are not distraught but confident; and
they often beat their bodies with a flat cane or, failing 10
that, with the hand, in order that they may be warmed. 2
It seems probable that owing to the violence and impetus
of the heat a disturbing inequality of the temperature is set
up in the body.

4 Why are brave men generally fond of wine ? Is it
because the brave are full of heat, and the heat is in the
region of the chest ? (For it is there also that fear shows 15
itself, acting as a process of cooling ; with the result that 3

1 Which gives a reason for their excessive thirst in addition to the
effect of fear.

2 Reading with Richards x f P^ lv ( tl O avn^eppavd^.

3 Omitting rot? /neV, inserted by Ruelle without MS. authority.

94 8 a PROBLEMATA

less 1 heat remains in the region of the heart, and in some
men the heart beats violently as it is cooled.) Those
then who have an abundance of blood in their lungs have
hot lungs, as though they were drunk, and so the presenti
ment of danger does not chill them. Such men are fond of
drinking ; for the desire for drink is due to the heat of this

20 region, as has been stated elsewhere, 2 and the desire is for
that which has power to stop the heat. Now wine is
naturally hot and satisfies the thirst better than water,
particularly in those whom we are now considering ; 3 the
reason for this has been stated elsewhere. 4 Hence those
who are suffering from inflammation of the lungs and those

25 who are mad both desire wine, though the lungs of the
former are hot owing to the fever, and those of the latter
owing to their state of disturbance. Since, then, the same
people are usually of a thirsty and of a brave kind, and
those who are thirsty desire wine and are therefore fond of
drinking, it necessarily follows that the two characteristics
of bravery and fondness for wine usually go together.

30 Hence those who are drunk are braver than those who
are not.

Why do states honour courage more than anything else, 5
though it is not the highest of the virtues ? Is it because
they are continually either making war or having war made
against them, and courage is most useful in both these
circumstances ? They, therefore, honour not that which is
ideally best, but that which is best for themselves.

35 Why do those w r ho are afraid tremble most in the voice, 6
the hands, and the lower lip ? 5 Is it because this affection
is due to the departure of heat from the upper parts of the
body ? If so, their pallor is due to the same cause. The
voice, then, trembles owing to the departure of heat from
the chest, the region in which the voice is set in motion

Reading fJTTuv (Bussemaker) and omitting p.ev t which is due to
dittography.
* Cp. 8;2 a 4ff.

Reading rwi/ TOIOVTWV (sc. TCOI> di/SpaW) for rS>v avTaw which gives
no sense : T. G. renders maximeque id genus hominum.
4 The reference cannot be identified.
6 Cp. chapters I and 7, and xi. 31.

BOOK XXVII. 6 948 a

thus becoming cooled. So too with the hands ; for they
are attached to the chest. The lower lip trembles, and not 948 b
the upper, because the upper lip hangs downwards l in the
direction of its natural tendency ; but the upward direction
of the lower lip is contrary to nature and it is held steady
in that position by the heat. When, therefore, the heat is
withdrawn as the process of cooling takes place, it trembles.
For the same reason the lip hangs down when a man is
angry, as can be seen clearly in children ; for the heat 5
rushes together into the heart.

7 Why do those who are afraid tremble, especially in the
voice, the hands, and the lower lip ? 2 Is it because the heat
fails in the region of the body in which the voice is situated,
while the trembling of the lip and hands is due to the fact
that they are very easily set in motion and contain very
little blood ? Those who are afraid also emit bile and their 10
sexual organs contract, the emission of bile being due to
the heat which descends and causes liquefaction, while the
contraction of the sexual organs is due to the fact that fear
comes from outside, and therefore the rush of heat is in the
contrary direction. 3

8 Why do those who are afraid feel both thirst and cold,
these being contrary affections ? 4 Do they feel cold because
they are chilled, and thirst because they are heated, since [5
under the influence of fear the heat and the moisture leave
the upper parts of the body ? That this happens is shown
by the change of colour and by the effect on the bowels ;
for the face becomes pale and the bowels are sometimes
loosened. The cold, therefore, is caused by the departure
of the heat, and the thirst by the departure of the moisture, 5
from the upper parts of the body.

9 Why is it that, although both fear and pain are a kind of 20
grief, those who are in pain cry out, but those who are

1 Reading TO 8e KUTCO ^eiXo? nXX ov TO avwdev
Kara) /cpe/narot /crX.

2 Another version of the problem of chapter 6.
Cp. 949 a 15 " r6 T v fltpp-ov eKKKpifj,evov.

4 This question has already been touched upon in chapter 3.

5 Reading 8u\ TO (TO) vypbv (sc. fnXcinftv) with Bonitz and Richards.

94 8 b PROBLEMATA

afraid keep silence ? Is it because those who are in pain
hold their breath (and so it is emitted all at once and comes
forth with a loud cry), whereas the body of those who are
afraid is chilled and the heat is carried downwards and

25 creates breath ? It creates breath in the particular region
to which it is carried ; hence those who are frightened
break wind. Now the voice is a rush of breath upwards
in a particular manner and through certain channels ; and
the reason why those who are in pain hold the breath is
that when we suffer anything (just as the other animals use
their horns or teeth or claws in self-defence) we invariably

3 o make use straightway and without thought of the resources
which we have in ourselves by nature, and against all or
most forms of pain heat is helpful. This is what occurs
when a man holds his breath ; for he applies heat and con
coction to the pain by collecting heat within him by means
of the breath.

35 Why is it that in those who are afraid the bowels are 10
loosened and they desire to pass urine ? 1 Is it because the
heat in us is as it were alive ? It therefore flees \vhenever it
is afraid of anything. Since, then, the fears due to nervous
ness and the like come from without and pass from the upper
to the lower parts of the body and from the surface to the
94 g a interior, the regions round the bowels and bladder becom
ing heated are loosened 2 and make these organs ready to
function. For anise and wormwood and all substances
which promote the flow of urine have heating properties.
Similarly the drugs which affect the bowels are those

1 This problem is quoted as Aristotelian by Aulus Gellius (xix. 4) :
A ristotelis libri simt qui problemata physica inscribuntur, lepidissimi
et elegantiarum omne genus referti. In his quaerit quam ob causam
evcniat, ut quibus invasit repentinus rei magnae timor plerumque alvo
statim cita fiant . . . ac de alvo quidem inter timendum prona atque
praecipiti causam esse dicit quod timor omnibus sit algijicus, qiiem ille
appellat ^U^POTTOITJTIKOV, quae iris frigoris sanguinem caldoremque

omnem de su)nma corporis cute cogat penitus etdepellat^fadatque simul
uti qui timent, sanguine ex ore decedente, pallescant. Is autem, inquit,
san^uis et caldor in iiltima coactus movet plerumque alvum et incitat.
While Aulus Gellius gives in the main the substance of this problem,
it is noticeable that the word ^VXP^OL^TIKOV does not occur in the text
as we have it, nor indeed elsewhere in the Aristotelian Corpus.
Reading d) for 8(, as suggested by Richards.

BOOK XXVII. 10 949

which cause heat in the lower parts of the body, 1 and some
of those which are applied merely 2 have a loosening effect,
while others set up a further process of liquefaction, like 5
garlic, which passes into the urine/ 5 Now heat coming
from the surfaces of the body and meeting in these regions
has the same effect as such drugs.

II Why do the sexual organs contract in those who are
afraid ? For one would expect the contrary to happen,
namely, that they should become relaxed, since the heat 10
collects in this region in those who are afraid. Is it because
those who are afraid are almost always as it were chilled ?
Their sexual organs therefore contract, because the heat
has left the surface of the body ; hence also those who are
greatly frightened have internal rumblings. The surface
of the body and the skin of those who are cold seems to
contract, because the heat is driven out ; and it is for this 15
reason too that they shiver. Now the scrotum too contracts
upwards and the testicles also are lifted up with it as it
is drawn in. 4 This is more readily seen in the effect on
the sexual organs ; for fear causes excretion, and an emis
sion of semen often occurs 5 in those who are nervous or 20
greatly alarmed.

1 Reading TU>V Kara). 2 Reading pwov with X a , Y a , AP.

3 Cp. above, 9o8 a 28 ff.

4 Reading avrr/ crvcrre^Xo^vrj for avrols crucrreAAo/ueVa)i> (cp. the Latin
version of T. G. atqite eo (sc. scrotd) contracto ima testiculi contra-
huntur}. There is nothing for nvrot? to refer to, and the view of
Bonitz (Index, sub -voce o-imreAAoo) that rruoTeXAdjueyoi is equivalent to
0o/3ou/nei/oi can hardly be right. aureo-ruA^eVoi might conceivably mean
downcast (cp. Eurip. H. F. 1417 (nWaraA^ni Kaicois), but this is
scarcely the sense required here, and the present participle could not
possibly bear this meaning.

5 Reading o-u/x/ScuW* (Platt) for avyKivel f].

949

BOOK XXVIII

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH TEMPERANCE

AND INTEMPERANCE, CONTINENCE AND

INCONTINENCE

WHY is it that some men become ill when, after having i
been accustomed to live intemperately, they adopt a tem-
25 perate mode of life? For example, Dionysius the tyrant,
when during the siege 1 he ceased drinking for a short
time, immediately became consumptive, until he changed
his manner of life and began to drink again. Is it because
in every one habit is a matter of importance, since it soon
becomes a second nature ? Just, then,^ as a fish would
fare ill if it continued long in the air or a man if he con-
so tinued long in the water, so those who alter their manner
of life suffer from the change, and a resumption of their
accustomed mode of life is just as much their salvation as if
they were returning to a natural condition. Furthermore,
men waste away if they have been accustomed to large quan
tities of a particular diet ; for if they do not receive their
usual food, they are reduced to the condition in which they
35 would be if they had no nourishment at all. Moreover,
the excretions, when mixed with a large quantity of food,
disappear, but by themselves they rise to the surface and are
carried to the eyes or lungs ; whereas, if one takes nourish
ment, they mix with it and become diluted and harmless.
949 But in those who live an intemperate life the excretions
become superabundant up to a certain point, when they
cease from their accustomed mode of life, owing to the fact
that much undigested matter is still present in them from
their former manner of living; and, when this is melted,
like a mass of snow, by the natural heat, the result is that
5 violent fluxes take place.

i. e. the siege of Syracuse by the Carthaginians in 397 B. C.
Reading ovv for av (Richards).

BOOK XXVIII. 2 949

2 Why is it that we speak of men as incontinent in con
nexion with two only of the senses, namely, touch and
taste P 1 Is it because of the pleasures that result from these
in us and in the other animals ? Being then shared by the
animals, they are held in least honour and so are regarded
as the only pleasures deserving of reproach, or at any rate
more so than any others. So we blame a man who is a
slave to them and call him incontinent and intemperate, 10
because he is a slave to the worst pleasures.

3 Why are men called incontinent in respect only of their
desires, although incontinence is possible also in anger?
Is it because an incontinent man is one who acts in some
way contrary to reason, and incontinence is a mode of life r 5
which is contrary to reason, and the desires are, generally
speaking, contrary to reason ? Feelings of anger, on the
other hand, are in consonance with reason, not in the sense
that reason prompts them, but in the sense that reason
informs us of the insult or of the charge made against us.

4 Why is it that we approve most of continence and 2 o
temperance in the young and wealthy, and of justice in the
poor ? Is it because we feel most admiration if a man
abstains from what he most desires, rather than from the
contrary ? Now a poor man desires easy circumstances,
while a rich young man wants enjoyment. 25

5 Why can men tolerate thirst less easily than hunger? 2
Is it because thirst is more painful ? A proof that it is
so is the fact that there is more pleasure in drinking when
one is thirsty than in eating when one is hungry. Now
the contrary of what is more pleasant 3 is more painful. Or
is it because the heat whereby we live 4 requires moisture
more? 5 Or is it because thirst is a desire of two things, 30
namely, drink and food, but hunger is a desire of only one,
namely, food ?

1 Cp. below, chapter 7. The doctrine is that of E. N. 1148* 8-10.

2 Cp. chapter 6.

3 Reading T fjftiovt, since the comparative is demanded by the
sense. 4 Heat being rj ^vxn<n px*l (G- A. 75i b 6).

5 Reading 5emu TOU vypov TO Sep/jiov co Coo/xej (W. D. R.). r) TO rjpov

appears to be a gloss which has replaced TO 6epp,6v, and TO Bcppov has
been afterwards inserted in the wrong place.

949 b PROBLEMATA

Why can we endure thirst less than hunger? 1 Is it 6
because the former causes us more pain ? A proof of the
pain it causes is the fact that the pleasure it gives is more
intense. 2 Further, he who is thirsty needs two things,
35 nourishment and cooling, and drink provides both of these ;
but he who is hungry needs one of them only.

Why are men called incontinent if they indulge to excess 7
in the pleasures connected with touch and taste ? 3 (For
95O a those who are intemperate in sexual intercourse and the
enjoyments of eating and drinking are called incontinent ;
and in the joys of eating- and drinking the pleasure is partly
in the tongue and partly in the throat ; hence Philoxenus 4
longed for the throat of a crane.) And why is the term incon
tinent never extended to the pleasures of sight and hearing?
5 Is it because the pleasures of touch and taste are common
to us and the other animals ? Being, then, shared by the
animals they are held in least honour and so are regarded as
the only pleasures deserving of reproach, or at any rate more
so than any others. So we blame a man who is a slave to
them and call him incontinent and intemperate, because he
is a slave to the worst pleasures. Now the senses being
I0 five in number, the other animals find pleasure only in the
two already mentioned ; in the others they find no pleasure,
or, if they do, it is only incidentally. For the lion 5 rejoices
when he sees or scents his prey, because he is going to
enjoy it ; 6 and when he has satisfied his hunger, such
things do not please him, just as the smell of dried fish
15 gives us no pleasure when we have eaten our fill of it,
though, when we wanted to partake of it, it was pleasant. 7

1 Cp. chapter 5. 2 Reading f] rjdovij ()?) o-(/>oporepa.

3 Cp. above, chapter 2. This problem is quoted in Greek by Aulus
Gellius (xix. 2) as Aristotelian.
\ Cp. E. E. i23i a 17.

5 The repetition of 6pS>v . . . opfov here is unsatisfactory, and in any
case we should expect a neuter to agree with woi/ understood. In
E. N. in8 a i8ff., where the same subject is discussed, the example
taken of an animal is the lion. We ought certainly, therefore, to read
here 6p&v /iei/ yap 6 XeW. [Richards (pp. /., p. 144) makes the same
suggestion.]

6 Reading arroXavo-fi (Bonitz).

7 Reading ^daa (Sylburg) for q& a.

BOOK XXVIII. 7 950

The scent of the rose, on the other hand, is always
pleasant.

8 Why are men less able to restrain their laughter in the
presence of friends ? Is it because, when anything is espe
cially elated, it is easily set in motion ? Now benevolence
causes elation, 1 so that laughter more readily moves us.

is clearly corrupt. The point of the solution of the problem
appears to depend on the metaphorical use of eru peii> ; and something
like the following seems to be required : f) d* (Cvoia eaipei, wore
juaXAoz; ro ye\oiov.

950 a

BOOK XXIX

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH JUSTICE
AND INJUSTICE

WHY is it that, although injustice is greater according as I
the good which is injured is greater, and honour is a greater
good, yet injustice in the matter of money seems to be
more serious and those who are unjust as regards money
25 are considered more unjust ? Is it because men prefer
money to honour, and money is common to all, whereas
honour comes only to a few and its enjoyment is a rare
occurrence ?

Why is it a more terrible thing to rob a man of a deposit 2
than of a loan ? 1 Is it because it is disgraceful to wrong
a friend ? Now he who robs another of a deposit does

30 wrong to a friend ; for no one places a deposit with another
unless he trusts him. A creditor, on the other hand, is not
a friend ; for, if a man is a friend, he gives and does not
lend. Or is it because the injustice is greater, since, in
addition to the loss inflicted, he also violates his plighted
word, for the sake of which, if for no other reason, he
ought to abstain from doing the wrong ? Further, it is

35 base not to requite like with like ; for the one party in
making the deposit regarded the other as his friend, but
the latter in robbing him treated him as an enemy ; but
a lender does not lend in the spirit of friendship. Again,
a deposit is handed over to be guarded and returned,
whereas the lender lends for his own advantage as well.
Now we are less angry at losing if we are in pursuit of
95o b gain, like fishermen when they lose their bait ; for the
risk is obvious. Again, those who make deposits are
generally the victims of plots or misfortune, but it is the
rich who lend money ; and it is more terrible to wrong the
unfortunate than the fortunate.

J Cp. below, chapter 6.

BOOK XXIX. 3 950

3 Why is it that in some law courts the jury give their 5
verdict 1 in accordance with the birth of the litigants rather
than the provisions of the will ? Is it because about birth it is
impossible to lie, but the truth must be declared, whereas
before now many wills have been proved to be forged ?

4 Why is it that poverty is more commonly found amongst
the good than amongst the bad? 2 Is it because, being 10
universally hated and despised, she takes refuge with the
good, thinking that with them she is most likely to find
safety and a place of habitation ; whereas she thinks that if
she goes to the wicked, they would never remain content
with the same condition but would steal or plunder, in
which case she could no longer remain with them ? Or 15
is it because she thinks that the good will treat her better
than any one else and that she is least likely to be in
sulted by them ? So, just as we place deposits 3 of money
with good men, so she of her own accord 4 ranges herself
with them. Or is it because, being of the female sex, she

is more helpless, so that she needs the assistance of the 20
good ? Or is it because, being herself an evil, she will not
betake herself to that which is evil, since if she were to
choose the evil, her position would be quite irremediable ?

5 Why is it that wrongs in other matters are not so liable
to be committed on a large scale 5 as those in respect of
money ? G For example, a man who has spoken a light
word would not therefore necessarily divulge a secret, nor 7
would one who has betrayed an individual also betray 25
a city, as a man who has stolen an obol would steal a talent

1 Reading ^(pi^ovrnt for ^(piovvTui, as suggested by Bekker.

2 Cp. below, chapter 8.

3 In the Teubner Text nOe^va is a misprint for Tidep.fQa.

4 Reading avrrjs for avrri$.

5 Reading at ddiKtm (ni) p.eiovs (Richards).

6 Reading xpr)pir. Most MSS. read p^ara, but Y a (which not in
frequently preserves the correct reading) reads xp^P ara ) an d the Latin
version renders iniuriae in pecuniis. The origin of the change to
prj^ara may be found in the fact that etVcbz . . . eiVoi occur below. If
pq/zara is read, no sense can be found for the concluding sentence of
the chapter ; whereas, if xp^ara is read, the argument is clear and
resembles that of chapter I.

7 Reading ov6e for u/\Xd ; the Latin version renders neque qui ununi
prodiderit, &c.

645-25 X

95 o b PROBLEMATA

also. Is it because, though there are forms of unjust dis
position which are worse, 1 the acts resulting from them are
less serious owing to lack of power ?

Why is it more disgraceful 2 to rob a man of a small 6
deposit than of a large loan ? 3 Is it because he who robs
30 another of a deposit is deceiving a man who thought him
to be honest ? Or is it because he who commits the one
crime would commit the other also?

Why is it that man, who of all animals has the advantage 7
of most education, is yet the most unjust of all ? Is it
because he possesses the power of reasoning to the greatest
degree, and has therefore most carefully estimated the
35 pleasures and happiness, and these are impossible of attain
ment without injustice ?

Why is it that wealth is more often found in the hands 8
of the wicked than in those of the good ? Is it because,
being blind, 4 it cannot read men s hearts and choose the

best?

95l a Why is it considered more just to defend the dead than 9
the living ? Is it because those who are alive can look
after themselves, but a dead man can no longer do so ?

Why is it that a man who associates with one who is 10
healthy does not himself become any healthier, 5 nor does
intercourse with the strong or beautiful improve a man s

5 condition, whereas association with the just and temperate
and good does have this effect ? Is it because some quali
ties can, and others cannot, be imitated by the soul, good
ness being a quality of the soul and health of the body ?
A man can, therefore, accustom himself to feel pleasure
and pain under the proper circumstances ; but his associa
tion with the healthy does not produce this result, for
health does not consist in taking pleasure or not in certain

10 things, since none of these things can produce health.

Sc. than that involved in stealing a talent.

Reading mcrxwv for alar\pov with Bonitz (Aristot. Stud., p. 418).

Cp. above, chapter 2.

Cp. above, chapter 4. where poverty is personified.

Cp. 886 b 5.

BOOK XXIX. ii 951

11 Why is it more terrible to kill a woman than a man,
although the male is naturally superior to the female ? Is
it because she is weaker and so he commits a greater l
injustice ? Or is it because it is not a manly act to use one s
strength against that which is greatly inferior ?

12 Why is the defendant given the position on the right 15
hand in a law court ? Is it from a desire to equalize matters ?
Since, then, the plaintiff possesses other advantages, the
defendant is given the advantage of position. Further,
as a rule defendants are under guard ; and, if the defendant
has the right-hand position, the guard is on his right. 2

13 Why is it that, when the votes for the plaintiff and for 20
the defendant are shown to be equal, the defendant wins the
case ? Is it because the defendant has heard only in court,
during the course of the trial itself, 3 the charges against
which he has to make his defence and produce the witnesses
to refute the accusations, 4 if any advantage is to be obtained
from them?" Now it is not easy for a man to foresee of 25
what he ought to provide witnesses or some other kind of
evidence to prove his innocence. The plaintiff, on the other
hand, can act as he pleases, and can begin to take action before
having the summons issued ; and even after he has summoned
his opponent he can invent and bring against him any
plausible accusation he likes. The lawgiver then, recogniz
ing that the defendant has the disadvantage in all these 30
respects, has given him any advantage which may accrue
from the disagreement of the jury. And, indeed, that
defendants are at a disadvantage is shown by the fact that
when men are in a state of alarm they omit much of what
they ought to have said or done, and defendants are,
generally speaking, always in greater danger ; and so, if

1 Reading pclfa (W. D. R.) for eAarrco, cp. 952* I.

2 The meaning perhaps is that the accused is placed on the right
hand of the judge and has on his own right hand the guard which has
charge of him ; he is, therefore, protected on both sides.

3 Reading with Richards, aiVw for avroO.

4 Omitting (TO) and e^eo-^u, which is probably due to the preceding

Reading with Y a d-xpc XydfjaeaQai and taking /xe XAoucri as a careless
plural for singular.

X 2

95 i a PROBLEMATA

35 they omit necessary parts of their defence, when they are
put on a level with their opponents in respect of their
claims, they would clearly have been victorious if they had
not omitted anything 1 .

Further, any one of us would prefer to pass a sentence
95i b acquitting a wrong-doer rather than condemn as guilty one
who is innocent, in the case, for example, of a man being
accused of enslavement or murder. For we should prefer
to acquit either of such persons, though the charges brought
against them by their accuser were true, 1 rather than con-
5 demn them if they were untrue ; for, when any doubt is
entertained, the less grave error ought to be preferred ;
it is a serious matter to decide that a slave is free, yet
it is much more serious to convict a freeman of being a
slave.

Further, if one man brings a charge and another disputes
his claim to any piece of property, we do not consider that

10 we ought to award the disputed property immediately to
the plaintiff, but that the man in possession ought to enjoy
it until the matter is decided. Similarly, when a number of
persons are involved in a case and the numbers of those
who declare that a wrong has been committed and of those
who deny it are equal just as in the case cited above
when one man brought an accusation, while another denied
the truth of it we consider that the lawgiver is right in

15 not handing over the disputed property 2 to the accuser
but allowing the defendant to remain in possession until
the plaintiff 3 has established some superiority. Similarly,
when the votes of the jury are equal and so neither side
has the superiority, 4 the lawgiver has allowed matters to be
left as they are.

Again, in serious crimes the punishments are also heavy,

20 so that, if the jury pass an unjust sentence and then change
their mind, 5 it is impossible to take the opportunity of

1 Punctuating TOUTCOV -yap eKaorou, OVTOOV a Karrjyopel alruiv, fj.a\\ov KrA.

2 We should perhaps read Trpna-Tidea-OaL (cp. 95l a 3l) for Trpoori
The Latin version of T. G. renders favere.

3 Reading <$ICOKCOI> for dSiK<aj> with Bonitz, Aristot. Stud.> p. 418.

4 Reading ov8ffj,ia vnepoxn with Bonitz, loc* cit.

5 Reading peTayvovviv (Richards).

BOOK XXIX. 13 95i b

remedying the mistake ; if, on the other hand, they acquit
the accused when they ought not to do so, if he lives 1 so
circumspectly as never to commit any crime again, how can
the jury have made a serious mistake in failing to condemn
such a man to death ? If, however, he subsequently com
mits a crime, the law 2 would consider 3 that he ought to be 25
punished for both crimes.

Or is it because it is an act of greater injustice to bring
an unjust accusation than to commit an offence which may
easily be made the subject of an unjust accusation ? 4 For
wrong-doing may be due to anger or fear or desire and to
many other causes, and not only to design, but an unjust
accusation is generally due to design. So when the votes 3
have proved equal, indicating both r> that the accuser has
brought an unjust charge and that the defendant is in the
wrong, the unjust accuser being judged the greater offender, 6
the lawgiver has awarded the legal victory to the defen
dant.

Again, we ourselves adopt the attitude towards our
servants that, when we suspect that they have committed 35
a crime and have no certain knowledge, but nevertheless
think that they have done the deed, we do not immediately
proceed to punish them ; and when we cannot pursue our
inquiries any further, we acquit them of blame. 952 a

Further, he who designedly commits a crime does a
greater wrong than he who does not act designedly. Now
the man who brings a vexatious charge against another
always does wrong designedly, whereas he who commits
any other crime may happen to do so either under com
pulsion or through ignorance or by some other chance. But 5
when the votes are equal, the prosecutor has been judged
by half the jury to be committing a wrong wilfully, while

1 Reading el /zeV ourcos- fv\aj3a)s (t^ 7 ?) or some similar verb.

2 The subject is 6 vofj.o8frr)s supplied.

3 Reading d&mr) (W. D. R.).

4 The text as it stands gives no sense either in itself or in view of
the rest of the argument, which seems to require something like the
following I rj on dSiKouTfpou p.ev ecmv dvdpbs (ddiKws (yKa\elv rj^ ravra

a [^rrof] CIKOS f&Tiv d8iKO)S cyKaXelcrdai.

5 Reading TO f for TO 8e [so also Bussemaker].
8 Reading (jbauAorepou for $ca>Aoi; (Richards).

952 a PROBLEMATA

the defendant is considered by the remainder to be in the
wrong, but not wilfully ; and so, since the prosecutor is
judged guilty of a more serious wrong than the defendant,
the lawgiver has rightly decided that he who has committed

10 the less serious wrong wins the case.

Further, a man is always more unjust who does not
expect to escape the observation of the man whom he
wrongs and nevertheless commits the wrong, than he who
expects to remain undiscovered. Now 1 he who brings a
vexatious charge against another does not expect to escape
the observation of the man whom he falsely accuses,
whereas those who commit any other crime usually try to
commit an injustice with the expectation of doing so with-

15 out the knowledge of their victims, so that plaintiffs ought
to be regarded as more unjust than defendants.

Why is it that, if a man steals from the baths or the 14
wrestling-school or the market or any similar place, he is
punished with death, whereas, if he steals from a house, he
merely pays back double 2 the value of what he has stolen ?

20 Is it because in houses it is possible in some way or other
to safeguard one s property ? For the wall is strong and
there is a key, and it is the business of all the slaves in the
house to see that the contents of the house are kept safe.
At the baths, however, and in places which are similarly
public, it is easy for any one who wishes to commit a crime ;

25 for those who place their property there have no sure
means of guarding it except their own eyes, so that, if one
takes one s eye off it for a moment, it is immediately placed
at the mercy of the thief. Hence the lawgiver, considering
that bathers are not able to guard their property, has set
the law to guard against thieves by threatening that they

30 shall lose their lives if they appropriate the possessions of
others.

Further, the owner of a house is responsible for admitting
into it whom he wishes and for introducing 3 into it any one
whom he does not trust ; but the man who deposits any

Reading with Richards ovv for yap.
2 The Teubner Text misprints 8m\ovs for dnr\ovv.
8 Reading elatypecrOai (Richards).

BOOK XXIX. 14 95 2 a

property in a bath cannot prevent any one irom coming 1
in, nor can he prevent him, when he has entered, from
placing his garments next to his own 1 when he has stripped
himself; 2 but, contrary to his wishes, the clothing of the
thief and of the man who is about to be robbed lie together 35
in a confused heap. Therefore the lawgiver has prescribed
not very heavy penalties to help the man who of his own
free will and by his own mistake has admitted the thief to
his house, but has clearly fixed heavy penalties for theft to
aid those who are obliged to share with others the right of
entrance and the promiscuity of the baths.

Further, it is obvious that all those who commit theft in
places the entrance to which is open to any one who wishes 5
to come are bad men, 3 and so, if they are allowed to live,
do not desire to have the semblance of honest men even for
the future advantage which they can gain from it, regarding
it as useless to pretend to be honest in the eyes of those who
know their real character ; they therefore continue hence
forward to be openly wicked Those, on the other hand,
whose wickedness is known to one person only, try to per- 10
suade that person by bribery not to make known their real
character to the rest of the world ; they are not likely
therefore to be completely wicked for ever, and so the
penalty which the lawgiver has fixed for them is less
severe.

Further, of all crimes those which are committed in the
most crowded meetings and assemblies bring most disgrace
upon the city, just as public orderliness brings the greatest 15
credit ; for it is at public gatherings that the citizens are
most conspicuous to each other and the rest of the world.
The result, therefore, of such thefts is that not only is the
man who loses his property personally injured, but also
abuse is heaped upon the city. This is why the lawgiver
has fixed heavier penalties for such thieves than for those 20
who abstract property from a private house.

1 Reading TO avrov <(TO) Ip-driov KT\,, and omitting KXetrTrjv as a
gloss.

2 Omitting av.

3 Reading novrjpoi for

95 2 b PROBLEMATA

Again, the man who loses anything from a private house
is in a place where l it is easy for him to bear his misfor
tune, since he is in his own home and neither suffers
anything nor is jeered at by others. But the man who is
robbed at the baths finds it difficult to leave without his

25 clothing, and, in addition, is usually jeered at by others ;
and this is harder to bear than the actual loss. Therefore
the lawgiver has prescribed heavier penalties to assist such
persons.

Again, many legislative parallels can be found for these
penalties. For example, if any one speaks evil of a magis
trate the punishment is severe, but there is no penalty for
speaking evil of an ordinary individual ; and rightly so, for

30 the legislator considers that the slanderer not only commits
an offence against the magistrate but also insults the city.
Similarly, a man who commits a theft at the harbour is
considered not only to harm the individual whom he robs,
but also to bring disgrace upon the city. And the same is

35 true of any crime committed in a place of public meeting.

Why is it that in law courts, if equal votes are given for 15
the two adversaries, the defendant wins the case ? 2 Is it
953 because the defendant has remained unaffected by the
action of the plaintiff, and in a position of equality with
him he would probably have won ?

Why is it that for theft the punishment is death, whereas 16
for assault, which is a more serious crime, the penalty or
fine is assessable in court ? Is it because to commit an
5 assault is an act of human weakness, of which all more or
less partake, whereas there is no force which compels us to
theft ? A further reason is the fact that a man who tries
to commit theft would think nothing of committing assault
also.

1 oBev can hardly be right and 061 should probably be read.

2 This chapter gives an additional suggestion for the solution of the
problem of chapter 13.

953

BOOK XXX

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH PRUDENCE,
INTELLIGENCE, AND WISDOM

I WHY is it that all those who have become eminent in 10
philosophy or politics or poetry or the arts are clearly of
an atrabilious temperament, and some of them to such an
extent as to be affected by diseases caused by black bile, as
is said to have happened to Heracles among the heroes ? l
For he appears to have been of this nature, wherefore 15
epileptic afflictions were called by the ancients the sacred
disease after him. 2 That his temperament was atrabilious is
shown by the fury which he displayed towards his children 3
and the eruption of sores which took place before his dis
appearance on Mount Oeta ; for this often occurs as the
result of black bile. Lysander the Lacedaemonian also
suffered from similar sores before his death. 4 There are 20
also the stories of Ajax and Bellerophon, of whom the
former became insane, while the latter sought out habita
tions in desert places ; wherefore Homer writes,

And since of all the gods he was hated,
Verily o er 5 the Alei an plain f) alone he would wander,
Eating his own heart out, avoiding the pathway of 25
mortals. 7

1 This problem is cited as Aristotelian by Cicero, Tusc. Disp. i. 33
Aristoteles quidem ait omnes ingeniosos melancholicos esse; ut ego
me tardiorem esse non moleste feram. Enumerat multos, idqiie quasi
constet, ratione7)i, cur ita fiat, adfert. It is also quoted by Plutarch ;
see below, note 4.

2 Called by Hippocrates and Galen voo-ns H/m/cXftn.

:t i. e. his murder of the children borne to him by Megara.

4 This passage is quoted as Aristotelian by Plutarch, Vit. Lysandri 2
ApicrToreX^s 1 de TUS p.eyd\as (pvtrfis d-rro(j)(ni>Q)v /MeXfryxoXiKa?, o>? TTJV
ScoK/JurofS" fat TlXdrwvos Kai HpaxXeou?, laropei KOL AvaavSpov OVK evdvs
aXX 7rp(r(3vTepov ovra rj] /zeXay^o/ua nepiTreael.! .

5 Reading KCITT Trediov for KamrfSiov.

6 Cp. Herodot. vi. 95 ; Arrian, Anab. ii. 5 ; Strabo xiv, p. 963. It
was situated near the city of Mallus in Cilicia, between the rivers
Pyramus and Sinarus.

7 Iliad vi. 200-2.

9 53 a PROBLEMATA

And many others of the heroes seem to have been similarly
afflicted, and among men of recent times Empedocles, Plato,
and Socrates, and numerous other well-known men, and also
most of the poets. For many such persons have bodily

30 afflictions as the result of this kind of temperament, while
some of them obviously possess a natural inclination to
affections of this kind ; in a word, they all, as has been
said, are naturally atrabilious. The cause of this may be
understood if we first take an example from the effect of
wine, which if taken in large quantities appears to produce

35 such qualities as we attribute to the atrabilious, inducing,
as it is drunk, many different characteristics, making men
for instance irritable, benevolent, compassionate, or reckless ;
whereas no such results are produced by honey or milk or
water or anything similar. One can easily see that wine
has a variety of effects by observing how it gradually
953 b changes those who drink it ; for, finding them chilled and
taciturn as the result of abstinence, a small quantity makes
them more talkative, while a larger quantity makes them
eloquent and bold, and, when they proceed to action,
reckless, and a still larger quantity makes them insolent
and afterwards frenzied, while outrageous excess enfeebles
5 them and makes them stupid like those who have been
epileptic from childhood, 1 and very similar to. those who
are exceedingly atrabilious. As, therefore, an individual
as he drinks and takes wine in different quantities changes
his character, so there are men who embody each character.
For the temporary condition of one man when he is drunk
is the permanent character of another, and one man is

10 loquacious, another emotional, another easily moved to
tears ; for wine has this effect also on some people 2 and
therefore Homer writes,

He says that I swim in tears, like a man that is heavy
with drinking. 3

Others become compassionate or savage or taciturn ; for

1 Placing a comma after eVtX^Trrovy.

2 Cp. above, 8;4 b 8-10.

3 Od. xix. 122, where the received text has $# 8e SaKpvrr\u>eiv /3e/3ap/?dra
pe (ppevas oiVa>.

BOOK XXX. i 953 b

some maintain a complete silence, especially those atrabilious
subjects who are out of their minds. Wine also makes men
amorous ; as is shown by the fact that a man who is drinking 15
is induced to kiss those whom, owing to their appearance or
age, no sober person would kiss. Wine then gives a man
extraordinary characteristics, but for a short time only, while
nature gives them permanently for the period of a lifetime ;
for some men are bold, others taciturn, others compassionate, 20
and others cowardly by nature. It is therefore clear that
each l characteristic is produced by wine and by nature by
the same means ; 2 for the whole body functions under the
control of heat. Now both the juice 3 and the atrabilious
temperament are full of wind ; wherefore the physicians say
that flatulence and disorders of the stomach are due to black 2 5
bile. Now wine has the quality of containing air; so wine
and the atrabilious temperament are similar in nature. The
froth which forms on wine shows that it contains air ; for
oil does not produce froth, although it is hot, but wine
produces it in large quantities and dark wine more than
white because it contains more heat and substance. It is 3
for this reason that wine excites sexual desire, and Dionysus
and Aphrodite are rightly coupled together, and atrabilious
persons are generally lustful. 4 For sexual desire is due to
the presence of breath, as is shown by the fact that the virile
organ quickly increases from a small to a large size by 35
inflation ; also 5 boys before they are capable of emitting
semen find a certain pleasure in rubbing their sexual
organs through lust when they are approaching the age
of puberty, and the swelling of the organ becomes mani
fest because breath passes through the passages through
which the semen subsequently passes ; also the effusion 954 &
and impetus of the semen in sexual intercourse is clearly
due to propulsion by the breath. So those foods and
liquids which fill the region of the sexual organs with
breath are rightly regarded as aphrodisiac. Thus dark wine

1 Reading ocao-roy (Richards) as in 1. 8.

2 Reading dia rov avrov (Richards). 3 i. e. wine.

4 Cp. 88o a 30-33. c Omitting en with Burnet.

6 Cp. H.A.\\\. 7. 586 a 16. It seems necessary to read with Richards
(pavtpbv OTI ylverai.

954

PROBLEMATA

5 more than anything else produces the condition found in
atrabilious persons. 1 This condition is obvious in some
individuals; for most atrabilious persons are thin 2 and
their veins stand out, the reason being the abundance not
of blood but of breath. The reason why all atrabilious

10 persons are not thin 3 or dark, 4 but only those who contain
particularly unhealthy humours, is stated elsewhere. 5

But to return to our previous subject of discussion, this
humour, namely, the atrabilious, is originally mingled in
the bodily nature, for it is a mixture of heat and cold, ot
which two things the bodily nature consists. Black bile,

15 therefore, becomes both very hot and very cold, for the
same thing naturally admits both heat and cold, like water,
which, though cold, yet when it is sufficiently heated (for
example, when it boils) is hotter than the actual flame which
heats it, and similarly a stone or a piece of iron when
thoroughly heated becomes hotter than charcoal, though

20 they are naturally cold. (This subject has been dealt with
more clearly in dealing with Fire. 6 ) Now black bile, which
is naturally cold and not on the surface, 7 being in the con
dition mentioned above, if it abounds in the body, produces
apoplexy or torpor or despondency or fear ; but when it is
overheated, it produces cheerfulness accompanied by song,

25 and frenzy, and the breaking forth of sores, and the like.
In most people then black bile engendered from their daily
nutriment does not change their character, but merely
produces an atrabilious disease. But those who naturally
possess an atrabilious temperament immediately develop

3 diverse characters in accordance with their various tempera
ments ; for example, those who are originally full of cold
black bile become dull and stupid, whereas those who

1 Omitting TrvevpaTtoSeis as a gloss on TOIOVTOVS.

2 Reading with Bussemaker o-K\rj(f)poi.

3 Reading o-*X7?0poi with AP.

4 Omitting oi before peXaves with Bekker.

5 This reference cannot be identified in the Aristotelian Corpus.

Camotius at the end of Book 24 states that according to some
authorities books on Fire and Light formerly found a place at that
point, but are now lost. The reference here is possibly to a lost book
on Fire.

7 Reading rmr6\aios for eVirroXcuW with Sylburg and Platt.

BOOK XXX. i 954 a

possess a large quantity of hot black bile become frenzied
or clever or erotic or easily moved to anger and desire,
while some become more loquacious. Many too, if this
heat approaches the region of the intellect, are affected by 35
diseases of frenzy and possession ; and this is the origin of
Sibyls and soothsayers and all inspired persons, when they
are affected not by disease but by natural temperament.
Maracus, the Syracusan, was actually a better poet when
he was out of his mind. Those in whom the excessive
heat dies down l to a mean temperature are atrabilious, but 954 b
they are cleverer and less eccentric and in many respects
superior to others either in mental accomplishments or in
the arts or in public life. In respect too of facing dangers
an atrabilious state causes great variation, in that 2 many of 5
those who are in this condition are inconsistent under the
influence of 3 fears ; for they vary from time to time according
to the state in which their bodies happen to be in respect
to the atrabilious temperament. Now this temperament is
itself also inconsistent, just as it produces inconsistency in
those suffering from the diseases which it causes ; for, like 10
water, it is sometimes cold and sometimes hot. And so the
announcement of something alarming, if it occurs at a time
when the temperament is rather cold, makes a man cowardly;
for it has already prepared a way for the entrance of fear,
and fear has a chilling effect (as is shown by the fact that
those who are greatly alarmed tremble). If, however, the
temperament is inclined to be hot, fear reduces it to a mode
rate temperature and causes a man to be in his senses and J 5
unexcited. So too with the despondency which occurs in
everyday life (for we are often in the condition of feeling
grief without being able to ascribe any cause for it, while at
other times we feel cheerful without knowing why), such
feelings and those usually called superficial 4 feelings occur
to a slight degree in every one, for something of the force

1 Reading cuaixQf) rj tiyav depfjLOTrjs with Bywater. The Latin version
of T. G. has ab quibus minus (a misprint for nlmius) ille calor
remissus ad mediocritatem sit. 2 Reading rw for rou.

3 Reading eV for ^v. [So. too, Richards and Klek.]

4 Reading fViTrdAata (which is suggested by the contrast with oaois
& els jBddos) instead of the meaningless TraXaid ; T. G. renders
superius.

9 54 b PROBLEMATA

20 which produces them is mingled in every one ; but those
who are thoroughly penetrated by them acquire them as
a permanent part of their nature. For as men differ in
appearance not because they possess faces but because they
possess certain kinds of faces, some handsome, others ugly,
others with nothing remarkable about them (those, that is,
who are naturally ordinary) ; so those who possess an atra-

25 bilious temperament in a slight degree are ordinary, but
those who have much of it are quite unlike the majority of
people. For, if their condition is quite complete, they are
very atrabilious ; but, if they possess a mixed temperament,
they are men of genius. If they neglect their health, they
have a tendency towards the atrabilious diseases, the part
of the body affected varying in different people ; in some

30 persons epileptic symptoms declare themselves, in others
apoplectic, in others violent despondency or terrors, in
others over-confidence, as happened to Archelaus, King of
Macedonia. The force which gives rise to such a condition
is the temperament according as it contains heat or cold.
If it be cold beyond due measure, it produces groundless

35 despondency ; hence suicide by hanging occurs most
frequently among the young, but sometimes also among
older men. Many men too put an end to themselves after
drunkenness, and some atrabilious persons continue in a
state of despondency after drinking; for the heat of the
955 a wine quenches their natural heat. Heat in the region in
which we think and form hopes makes us cheerful ; and for
this reason all men are eager to drink until they become
intoxicated, for abundance of wine makes all men hopeful,
just as their youth makes children sanguine ; for old age is
5 despairing but youth is full of hope. There are a few who
are seized with despondency while they are drinking, for
the same reason as makes others despondent after drinking.
Those then who become despondent as the heat in them
dies down tend to hang themselves. Hence the young and l
the old are more likely to hang themselves; for old age

10 makes the heat die down, and so, in the young, does their

1 Omitting fj with Richards.

BOOK XXX. i 955 a

condition, which is itself natural. 1 When the heat is extin
guished 2 suddenly, most men make away with themselves
to the general astonishment of all, since they have given no
previous sign of any such intention. When the tempera
ment caused by the admixture of black bile is colder, it
gives rise, as has been already remarked, to despondency 15
of various kinds, but when it is hotter to cheerfulness.
Hence the young are more cheerful, the old more despon
dent, the former being hot and the latter cold ; for old age
is a process of cooling. Extinction takes place suddenly
from external causes, just as objects which have been heated
in the fire are cooled by unnatural processes, as for example
when water is poured over hot coals. Hence men some- 20
times commit suicide after drunkenness ; for the heat of the
wine is introduced from outside, and when it is extinguished
the condition which leads to suicide is set up. Also after
sexual intercourse most people tend to be despondent ;
those, however, who emit a considerable amount of excre
ment with the semen become more cheerful, for they are
relieved of an excess of excrement and breath and heat. 25
But those who indulge in sexual intercourse 3 are often
more despondent, for by so doing they become cooled,
because they lose something which is valuable, as is shown
by the fact that the amount of semen which is emitted is
not great. 4

To sum the matter up, owing to the fact that the effect
of black bile is variable, atrabilious persons also show varia- 30
tion ; for the black bile becomes very hot and very cold.
And because it has an effect upon the character (for heat
and cold have such an effect to a greater extent than any
thing else in us), like wine mingling in a stronger or weaker
form in the body, it gives us our own special characters.
Now both wine and black bile are full of breath. And 35

Omitting TO ^apaLvo^vov Bepnov as a gloss on TO nd

O 701?

can hardly stand here, and the required sense
is given by the Latin version, which renders qtiibus autem calor
exstmctus subiio est. We should probably read 6 cnny <5e afievwrai
({atyirjs, ot 7rAeio~T(H KT\. ; cp. below, 1. 18.

3 eKflvoL will be equivalent to ol tt(poSio-iacraj>re?. Possibly ereooi
should be read ; the Latin version has ceteri.

4 i. e. it has quality rather than quantity.

9 55 a PROBLEMATA

since it is possible for an abnormal state to be well
attempered and in a sense a favourable condition, and since
it is possible for the condition to be hotter and then again
cold, when it should be so, or to change to the contrary
owing to excess, the result is that all atrabilious persons
40 have remarkable gifts, not owing to disease but from
natural causes.

955 b Why do we say that we acquire a habit as the result 2
of pursuing some sciences but not others ? Are we said to
acquire a habit only by such sciences as enable us to make
discoveries, since discovery is the result of a habit ?

Why is it that of all the animals man has most practical 3
5 wisdom ? Is it because he has the smallest head in pro
portion to his body ? Or is it because he is abnormally
small in certain parts ? For that is why his head is small,
and among men those who have smaller heads are wiser
than those who have larger heads.

Why is it that a journey seems longer when we traverse 4
10 it without knowing its length than when we know it, all
other conditions being equal ? l Is it because to know its
length is to be able to connect a number with it ? For that
which cannot be numbered is the same as the infinite, and
the infinite is always more than the determinate. Just as,
therefore, if one knows that a journey is a certain length
it must necessarily be finite, so if one does not know its
15 length one as it were converts the proposition 2 and the
mind draws a false conclusion, and this journey appears
infinite. Furthermore, 3 a quantity is determinate, and that
which is determinate is a quantity ; therefore when a
thing does not appear determinate it will appear to be
as it were infinite, because that which is of a nature to be
20 determined, if it is not so, is infinite, and that which
appears not to be determined necessarily appears in a sense
unlimited.

1 This problem has already been dealt with in V. 25.

2 See note on 883 b 8.

3 Reading en for eVel and placing a full stop before it, cp. 883 13 9.

BOOK XXX. 5 955 b

5 Why is it that, whereas we become wiser as we grow
older, yet the younger we are the more easily we can
learn ? Is it because God has given us two instruments
within ourselves, which enable us to use external instru
ments, providing the body with the hand and the soul 25
with intelligence ? For intelligence is among the things
implanted in us by nature, being as it were an instrument ;
and, whereas the sciences and arts are among the things
created by us, intelligence is one of the gifts of nature.
So just as we cannot use the hand to the best advantage
immediately after birth, but only when nature has perfected
it (for the hand can perform its particular function best as 30
age progresses), in like manner of our natural endowments
reason is of most assistance to us not in early life but as we
get old, and is then at its highest perfection, unless it becomes
incapacitated by anything, as may happen also to the other
natural endowments. Intelligence comes to us later than
the faculty of using the hands, because the instruments 35
used by the intelligence are posterior to those used by the
hands. For science is an instrument of the intelligence
(for it is useful to the intelligence just as flutes are useful
to the flute-player), and many things in nature are instru
ments of the hands, but nature itself and its creations are
prior to science. Now it is natural that where the instru
ments are prior, the faculties should also come into being 4
in us first (for it is by using the instruments that we acquire
a habit) ; and the instrument of each faculty is related 956*
similarly to that faculty, 1 and conversely, as the instruments
are to one another, so are the faculties of which 2 they are
the instruments to one another? Intelligence then for this
reason comes to us when we are older ; but we learn more 5
quickly when we are young because we do not yet know
anything, and when we know more we are no longer so
well able to acquire knowledge, 4 just as we remember best

1 i. e. as the instrument of any other faculty is related to that faculty.

2 Reading with Richards OVTUS (&v) ra opyava.

3 Reading avrd (Richards). The reasoning resembles that of E. N.
1131" 5-7 : A is to A as B is to B ; and, therefore, as A is to B so
is A to B.

4 Reading with Richards OUKCTI opoitos bvvdpfQa &cx.e<r0ai KT\.

645-25 Y

95 6 a PROBLEMATA

what we come upon early in the day, and then, as the day
10 goes on, are less able to remember what happens, because
we have come into contact with a number of incidents.

Why should man be obeyed more than any other animal ? 6
Is it because, as Plato answered to Neocles, he alone of all
the animals can count? Or is it because he is the only
animal that believes in gods ? Or is it because he is the
most imitative (for it is for this reason that he can learn) ?

15 Why is it that we feel no pleasure in the contemplation 7
or anticipation of the fact that the interior angles of a
triangle are equal to two right angles, and similar geo
metrical truths except in so far as we enjoy the specula
tion, and the pleasure of this is always the same and would
be equally great if these angles were equal to three or more
right angles but we rejoice at the recollection of an Olympic

20 victory or the sea-battle at Salamis, and at the anticipation
of such events, but not in their opposites ? Is it because l
we rejoice in such events as having taken place or taking
place, but as regards what happens in the course of nature
the contemplation of the real state of affairs alone causes us
pleasure, whereas actions 2 give rise to the pleasure caused

25 by their results ? Since, then, actions are various, their
results too are sometimes painful and sometimes pleasant ;
and we avoid and pursue anything in accordance with
pleasure and pain.

Why do doctors continue their treatment only until 8
health is restored ? 3 For the doctor reduces 4 the patient,
and next dries his body, then creates a healthy condition
30 and at that point stops. Is it because 5 it is impossible for
any other condition to be produced from health ? Or, if it
is possible, is it the task of another science, and will what
is produced from health be something different? Now,

1 Reading TOIOVTOIS r) on.

Reading cfrvcriv <^) OK /car d\r)6eiav e^a $ecopia f)doi>r]V fjiovrj i)fjuv Troul,
at Se 7rpufiy /crX. (W. D. R.).

3 The text of this chapter is unsatisfactory, but the general sense is
clear.

The Teubner text misprints la-xvaivai for I
6 Reading Trorepov <(6 ) OVK (Richards.)

BOOK XXX. 8 956 a

if health is produced from conditions which are its opposite
or are intermediate between health and sickness, it is obvious
that the patient is sick because he is too moist or too dry
or something else. 1 The doctor, then, from a state of cold
creates a less extreme condition and, finally, 2 a condition of
a certain heat or dryness or moisture by change from the 35
opposite or intermediate condition, 3 until he achieves a state
which is such as to constitute a condition of health ; and
from this no condition can be produced except one which
is intermediate between health and sickness. The possessor
of the art can, then, create some new condition ; for, when
he has reached a certain point, he can retrace his steps
and undo his work ; but the doctor s art has nothing to do
with such a course, for its aim is always to create a better 4
condition. 4 So neither the doctor s art 5 nor any other art
will create anything else out of health ; for either nothing 956 b
would be being produced, 6 or else the opposite of health,
if the same science were being employed (so too out of a
house nothing could make its contrary) : nor is there any
other art 7 which can make anything out of health, except
as making a whole out of a part, as, for example, when the
cobbler s art makes a shoe out of the front part of a shoe ; 8
for these two things can be produced out of one another
by two processes, one of composition and the other of 5
destruction.

9 Why is it generally considered that the philosopher is
superior to the orator ? 9 Is it because the philosopher
spends his time in studying the actual forms of things,
while the orator deals with the embodiments of these
forms the former considering what injustice and tyranny
are, the latter urging that a certain individual is unjust or
dealing with the character of a tyrant ? I0

1 Reading TOIOVTOV

2 Reading re Xos for reXeov : T. G. renders postremo.

3 Deleting the comma after eVamW.

4 Reading fteXriovos (Richards).

;> Reading wore ovre d\Xr) ovrf avrrj.

6 Reading eyivero (av) (Richards).

7 Reading ovd ecmv a\\r] r^xyr] (from T. G.).

8 Cp. Rhet. 1392*31 ff.

9 A shorter form of this problem occurs in xviii. 5.

Y 2

95 6 b PROBLEMATA

Why are theatrical artists generally persons of bad 10
character ? l Is it because they partake but little of reason
and wisdom, 2 because most of their life is spent in the
pursuit of the arts which provide their daily needs, and
because the greater part of their life is passed in incontinence
15 and often in want, and both these things prepare the way to
villainy ?

Why did the men of old institute prizes for physical II
contests but none for wisdom ? Is it because in all fairness
the judges should in the intellectual sphere be either the
superiors or at any rate not the inferiors of the competitors ?
Now if those who were pre-eminent in wisdom had to

20 compete and a prize had been offered, they would have no
one to act as judges/ 3 In athletic contests, however, any
one can judge by merely using his eyes. Further, the
original institutor of the games did not wish to propose to
the Greeks such a contest 4 as would be likely to produce

25 violent disputes and enmity ; for when one is rejected or ac
cepted in a contest of bodily strength, men do not altogether
harbour any grievance nor feel sentiments of enmity to
wards the judges, but they feel great wrath and indignation
against those who decide their relative wisdom or worthless-
ness ; and this is a quarrelsome and bad state of affairs.

30 Furthermore, the prize ought to be better than the contest ;
for in athletic games the prize is more desirable than, and
superior to, the contest. But what prize could be found
superior to wisdom ?

Why is it that man in particular thinks one thing and 12
does another ? Is it because the same science deals with
contraries ? Or is it because the reason has many objects,
35 desire one ? Now man usually lives by the intelligence, the
animals by appetite, passion, and desire.

1 This problem is quoted by Aulus Gellius (xx. 4) with slight
textual variations as from the Trpo/SXi^arn eyKVK\ia of Aristotle.

2 Reading Xoyou (*ai) vofpias, which is supported by Aulus Gellius,
who reads \6yov Kal 0iXoo-o0i ar.

8 Reading avrols.

4 Reading e TJS for e &?.

BOOK XXX. 13 95 6 b

13 Why is it that some prudent men spend their time
acquiring rather than using? Is it because they are
following the habit of doing so? Or is it due to the
pleasure of anticipation ?

14 (Why do those who sleep deeply and most pleasantly see
no visions ? Is it) ] because sensation and thought function
because the mind is at rest hence the word knowledge
(67r^o-T?7//7?) seems to be derived from the fact that knowledge 4
checks the mind (LO-T^O-L) 2 since when it is in motion

and being carried along it can neither have sensation nor 957 a
think ? Hence it is that children and those who are drunk
and the insane are senseless ; for, owing to the abundance
of heat present in them, they are in a state of considerable
and very violent movement, but when this ceases they 5
become more sensible ; for, when the thought is undis
turbed, they can control it better. Those who have visions
during their sleep dream because thought is checked, and
in proportion as it is at rest. For the mind is greatly
moved during sleep, since, when heat collects in the interior
from the rest of the body, there is a very considerable and 10
violent movement ; and it is not true, as most people suppose,
that it is most at rest and by itself, and especially so when
no vision is seen. The contrary is really true ; for because it
is in considerable movement and never rests for a moment,
it cannot think. And it is naturally in most movement when I5
it sleeps most pleasantly, because it is then in particular that
the greatest amount of heat collects in the interior of the
body. That, when it is in motion, the mind cannot think,
not only in its waking hours but also in sleep, is proved
by the fact that one is least likely to see visions during the 20
sleep which follows the taking of food ; now this is the time
when the mind is most disturbed owing to the nourishment
which has been introduced into the body. A vision occurs
when sleep comes over us while we are thinking or letting

1 Reading, with the margin of X a AP, Ata ri ol padfws /cat fj8io-Ta
KadevdovTfs ovftfv evimviov opuxnv ; /}. This reading is also translated in
the Latin version.

2 The word eVio-n;/^, which is really derived from fVio-ra/xat, is here
derived from "lo-rrjfj.i or rather f 0rrr;/zi (cp. below, 95 7 a 6).

9 57 a PROBLEMATA

things pass before our eyes. Hence we usually see things
which we are doing or intend or wish to do ; for it is on

25 these things that our thoughts and fancies most often dwell.
And the better men are, the better are their dreams, because
they think of better things in their waking hours, while
those who are less well disposed in mind or body have
worse dreams. For there is a close correspondence between
the disposition of the body and the images of our dreams ;

30 for, when a man is ill, the ideas proposed by his thoughts
are bad, and furthermore, owing to the disturbance which
reigns in his body, his mind cannot rest. It is for this
reason that atrabilious persons start in their sleep, because,
owing to the excess of heat, the mind is in a state of too
much movement, and, when the movement is too violent,

35 they cannot sleep.

957

BOOK XXXI
PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH THE EYES

1 WHY does rubbing the eye stop sneezing ? * Is it because
by this means evaporation is given to the moisture ? For
the eye sheds tears after friction , and sneezing is due to an 40
abundance of moisture. Or is it because the lesser heat is 957
destroyed by the greater ? Now the eye when it is rubbed
acquires more heat than is contained in the nose ; and for
this reason even if we rub the nose itself the sneezing
stops.

2 W r hy can one see more accurately with one eye than 5
with both eyes ? Is it because more movements are set up
by the two eyes, 2 as certainly happens in those who squint ?
The movement of the two eyes, therefore, is not one, but
that of a single eye is one ; therefore one sees less accurately
with both eyes.

3 Why do the eyes tend to become very red in those who
are angry, and the ears in those who are ashamed ? Is it 10
because the eyes are chilled in those who are ashamed (for

shame dwells in the eyes ), so that 3 they cannot look
straight in front of them ? (Cowardice also involves a
cooling in the same region.) Now the heat 4 travels in
a direction away from the forepart of the head, and the ears
are situated in the opposite part of the head, and therefore
they redden most under the emotion of shame. 5 But under 15

1 This problem is verbally repeated in xxxiii. 8; cp. also xxxiii. 2.

2 Reading rr\eiovs al (Platt).

3 Reading (eV o(/)$aA/xoi? yap mSai?) (axrr ^ dvTif3\7Tfiv KrA., war*
having probably fallen out by haplography owing to the al8a>s preceding.
The quotation is from the Cresphontes of Euripides, Nauck 2 fr. 457.

4 Reading TO Qepiiov (cp. 96 1 a n) for ro oTnadev. The Latin version
of T. G. has calor autem in part em transit adversam, &c. The
meaning will be that under the influence of shame the eyes become
cold, and therefore the heat is driven backwards and so reddens the
ears.

5 Cp. xxxii. i, 8, and 12, where additional reasons are given.

957

b PROBLEMATA

the influence of provocation assistance is sent l to the more
sensitive and easily affected part, 2 as though it were suffer
ing violence ; for in those who are frightened it fails alto
gether there.

Why is it that, if one eye is held down, the other has a 4
more intent gaze ? Is it because the origins of sight in the
two eyes are connected at one source ? So when one eye
20 moves, the common source of sight is also set in motion ;
and when this moves, the other eye moves also. When
one eye therefore is held down, all the movement will be
concentrated on the other eye, which consequently will be
able to gaze more intently.

Why is it that those who are blind from birth do not 5
become bald ? Is it because the eye is injured by the
presence of a large quantity of moisture in the region of

25 the head ? This is why they cauterize the veins round the
temples of those who suffer from running at the eyes (thus
closing the ducts through which the humours flo\v), and
scrape the head, cutting into the skin upon it. Since,
therefore, it is the excretion gathering in the head which
injures the eyes, this same excretion by collecting in too
great quantities in the head might prevent the eyes :>> from

30 originally coming into being at all. And since the hair
grows from excretions, and the excretion in the head of
those who are blind from birth is abundant, it is only
natural that they are not bald.

Why are those whose eyes protrude affected more than 6
others by smoke ? Is it because smoke reaches the pro
jecting parts most quickly ?

35 Why is it that we can turn the gaze of both eyes simul- 7
taneously towards the right and the left and in the direction
of the nose, and that of one eye to the left or to the right, but
cannot direct them simultaneously one to the right and the
other to the left ? 4 Similarly, we can direct them downwards
and upwards ; for we can turn them simultaneously in the

1 i. e. there is a rush of heat. 2 i. e. the eyes.

3 The Teubner text misprint avrovs for avrovs.

4 i. e. outwards away from the nose.

BOOK XXXI. 7 957*

same direction, but not separately. Is it because the eyes, 40
though two, are connected at one point, 1 and under such
conditions, when one extremity moves, the other must follow 958*
in the same direction, for one extremity becomes the source
of movement to the other extremity ? Since, therefore, it is
impossible for one thing to move simultaneously in contrary
directions, it is impossible also for the eyes to do so ;
for the extremities would move in opposite directions if
one moved up and the other down, and the source of the 5
movement of both of them would have to make correspond
ing movements, which is impossible. 2 The distortion of
the eyes is due to the fact that the eyeballs possess a
moving principle and turn, to a certain extent," upwards
and downwards and sideways. When, therefore, being so
placed that they are in a similar position to one another
and midway between an upward and a downward and an 10
oblique movement, 4 the two eyeballs catch the visual ray
on corresponding points of themselves, they are not dis
torted and their gaze is quite mobile " (though when G they
catch the visual rays on corresponding points of them
selves, although the vision is not distorted it does not
follow that the position of the eyes is the same.) 7 Yet, if
you turn up the whites of the eyes, part of the pupil is 15
obscured, as for example in those who are about to sneeze ;
others have oblique vision, madmen for example ; in others
. the gaze is turned towards the nose, as in tragic masks and
in those who are nervous, for their glance denotes concen
trated thought. But those who keep their gaze fixed on
one point without 8 having their eyeballs similarly situated,
or who have them similarly situated but do not keep them

1 Cp. above, 957 b 19 ff.

2 The movement of each eye corresponds with a movement of their
common point of connexion ; if, therefore, the two eyes move simul
taneously in contrary directions, the point of connexion must make
two contrary movements at the same time, which is impossible.

Reading ^XP 1 rou -

4 Placing the comma after Tr\dyiov instead of /avetcr$ai.

5 Reading KivrjTni : T. G. renders mobiles,

6 Reading 6 o-ai & {"), as suggested by the Teubner editors.

7 The point of this sentence seems to be that the previous proposition
is not convertible.

8 Reading /^ for p.rjd\ The Teubner text misprints vpoicos for

958 a PROBLEMATA

20 fixed on the same point, both these have distorted vision ;
they therefore scowl and screw up the eyes, for they try
to fix one eyeball in the same position as the other ; so
they leave one eye alone and try to bring the other into
position. If the vision of both eyes does not rest on the
same point, 1 they must be distorted ; for the same thing

25 happens as in those to whom, when they press under the
eye, 2 a single object appears double, for in these too the
source of vision is disturbed. If, therefore, the eye is moved
upwards, the terminus of the vision is lowered ; if down
wards, it is raised. And if the position of one eye is
changed, the object of the vision therefore seems to move

30 up or down, because the vision also does so, but it does not
appear double unless the vision of both eyes is in use.
A similar distortion 3 occurs also in one whose eyes do not
correspond, 4 causing him to see double ; but this is due
to the position of the vision, because it is not in the middle
of the eye.

35 Why do those who are short-sighted write in small 8
characters ? 5 For it is strange that those who have not
acute vision should do what requires such vision. Is it
because small things appear large when they are near at
hand, and the short-sighted hold what they are writing
close to their eyes ? Or is it because they screw up their
eyes when they write ? For owing to the feebleness of
their sight, if they write with their eyes wide open, the
958 b vision, being dispersed, can only see dimly ; but when the
eyes are screwed up, it all falls on one point, and, since it
forms a small angle, it necessarily causes the writing of
small characters.

1 Reading /caret ravrb with Bussemaker.

2 The full phrase would be vTrojBdXXova-i TQV 8aKrv\ov v-rro rov o<pda\fj.6v ;
cp. de Insomniis 44i b 31, and Met. io63 a 8. The reference is to the
experiment of slightly displacing the eyeball by pressing the finger
under it.

3 Putting a full stop after eoo-i and reading KCU Siao-Tpocpq Toiavrr}.

4 eTep6(l)da\fj,os in Classical Greek means having only one eye ; in
later Greek it can mean having different eyes ; see L. and S. s.v.

and cp. erepoyXau/coy, eVepOTrou?, &C.

6 Cp. below, chapter 15.

BOOK XXXI. 9 958 1

g Why can some people see more clearly after suffering"
from ophthalmia ? Is it because their eyes are thus purged ? 5
For often the external thickening blocks the vision, but is
dissolved when the eye discharges. Hence also it is bene
ficial that the eyes should be made to smart, with onion for
example ; l but a substance of the opposite kind, such as
marjoram, has an adverse effect. 2

IO Why are those who see with only one eye less liable to
disturbance of the vision ? Is it because their mind is less ro
affected, and so the disturbance of the vision is less felt?

11 Why do objects appear double to those whose eyes are
distorted? 3 Is it because the movement 4 does not reach
the same point on each of the eyes ? So the mind thinks
that it sees two objects when it really sees one twice.
A similar phenomenon occurs if one crosses the fingers ;
for a single object appears to be two to a single person 15
touching it twice. 5

12 Why is it that the senses on the right side of the body
are not superior to those on the left side, but in all other
respects the right side of the body is superior ? G Is it
a question of habit, namely, that we accustom ourselves
immediately to perceive equally well with the senses on
both sides of the body ? And it seems that the superiority
of the right-hand parts of the body is due to habit, for we
can accustom ourselves to be ambidextrous. Or is it 20
because to feel sensation is to be passive, and the right
parts of the body are superior in that they are more active
and less passive than the left?

13 Why is it that in all other respects the right side of the
body is superior, but in sensation the two sides are alike? 7

1 Cp. 959 b II, 12. It seems necessary to read Kpo^vut for

2 The reading here is uncertain, but the sense is clear.

3 Reading diearpa/u/xeWff (cp. a 2o) for Suo-ru/MeVoir, which can hardly
bear the meaning given by Bonitz (Index 196* 22) of distractis oculis.

4 i. e. of the visual ray from the object seen.

5 This phenomenon is referred to again in 959* 15; cp. also Met.
ion a 33, an d de Somniis 46o b 20 ff. It appears necessary to read

6 Cp. below, chapters 13, 18, and 29.

7 Cp. chapters 12, 18, and 29.

95 8 b PROBLEMATA

25 Is it because we habitually practise the equal use of sensa
tion on both sides ? Moreover, to feel sensation is to be
passive, and the superiority of the right side of the body is
shown in activity, not in passivity.

Why is physical exercise detrimental to acuteness of 14
vision ? Is it because it makes the eye dry, as it does the
30 rest of the body ? Now dryness hardens every kind of
skin ; so it has that effect also on the skin covering the
pupil. This is also the reason why the aged have not
acute vision ; for their eyes have a hard and wrinkled
surface, and so the vision is obscured.

Why do the short-sighted, though they have not acute 15
35 vision, write in small characters? 1 Yet it is characteristic
of acute vision to see what is small. Is it because, having
weak sight, they screw up their eyes ? For when the
sight proceeds forth in a concentrated glance it sees better,
but when the eye is wide open its vision is dispersed. So
owing to the feebleness of their sight they bring their
eyelids close together, and, because their vision proceeds
from a small area, they see magnitude on a small scale, and
959 a the characters which they write are on the same scale as
their vision.

Why do the short-sighted bring their eyelids close 16
together when they look at anything? Is it due to the
weakness of their sight, so that, just as a man in looking at
5 a distant object puts his hand up to his eyes, they close the
eyelids to look at objects near at hand ? They do so in
order that the vision may proceed forth in a more concen
trated form, since it passes through a narrower opening,
and that it may not be immediately dispersed by passing
out through a wide aperture. A wider vision, however,
covers a larger field.

Why is it that if the eye be moved sideways a single 17
10 object does not appear double ? Is it because the source
of sight is still in the same line ? It can only appear double
when the line is altered upwards or downwards ; and it

1 Cp. above, chapter 8.

BOOK XXXI. 17 959

makes no difference if it is altered sideways, unless it is
also at the same time altered upwards or downwards. 1
Why, then, is it possible in sight for a single object to
appear double if the eyes are in a certain position in
relation to one another, but impossible in the other senses ?
Is it not possible also in touch that one thing becomes 2 15
two if the fingers are crossed ? 3 But with the other senses
this does not happen, because they do not perceive objects
which extend to a distance away from them, nor 4 are they
duplicated like the eyes. It takes place for the same
reason 5 as it does with the fingers ; for then the touch is
imitating the sight.

18 Why is it that, though in the rest of the body the left 20
side is weaker than the right, this is not true of the eyes,
but the sight of both eyes is equally acute ? 7 Is it because
the parts of the body on the right side are superior in
activity but not in passivity, and the sight is passive ?

19 Why is it that when we keep our gaze fixed on objects
of other colours our vision deteriorates, whereas it improves
if we gaze intently on yellow and green objects, such as 25
herbs and the like ? Is it because we are least able to gfaze

o

intently on white and black (for they both mar the vision),
and the above-mentioned colours come midway between
these, 8 so that, the conditions of vision being of the nature of
a mean, our sight is not weakened thereby but improved ?
Perhaps, just as we take harm from over-violent physical 30
exertion but moderate exercise is beneficial, so too is it with
the sight ; for we over-exert the sight if we gaze intently
on solid objects, but we do not strain it in looking at objects
which contain moisture, since there is nothing in them to
resist the vision. Now green things are only moderately
solid and contain a considerable amount of moisture ; they 35

1 Reading tav fj.i] S.fj.a Kul ava> (f) Kara)/.

2 We should perhaps read 0.uVerat for ytVrai.

3 Cp. above, 958 b 14, 15, and note.

4 Reading o#re for ov8e.

5 Reading, with Richards, 8u\ TO.VTO.

6 i. e. the two crossed fingers resemble the two eyes.

7 Cp. chapters 12, 13, 29.

8 Black and white being contraries (cp. de Sensu 445 b 25, &c.).

9 59 a PROBLEMATA

therefore do not harm the sight at all, but compel it to rest
upon them, because the admixture of their colouring is well
attempered to the vision.

Why is it that we see other things better with both eyes, 20
but we can judge of the straightness l of lines of writing
40 better with one eye, putting it close to the letters ? Do
959 b both eyes falling on the same point cause confusion, as the
writers on optics say, whereas, when we look with one eye,
straightness is more apparent to the straight vision, just as
it is when a measuring rod is used ?

5 Why does smoke make the eyes smart more than any 21
other part of the body ? Is it because they alone are very
weak, since the inner parts of the body are always the
weakest ? (This is shown by the fact that vinegar and
anything pungent causes not the outer but the inner flesh
to smart, because 2 the latter is the rarest flesh in the body
and contains most pores.) For the vision finds its exit

10 through certain pores, and so what causes most stinging
within is drawn away ;j from the outer flesh. The onion
too has a similar effect and anything else which causes the
eye to smart, and of liquids olive-oil more than any other,
because it is composed of very small particles and so sinks
in through the pores. Vinegar is used as a medicament for
the rest of the flesh.

15 Why is it that the eye, although it is very weak, is the only 22
part of the body which does not feel the cold ? Is it because
the eye is of a fatty consistency and does not partake of the
nature of flesh, and such substances are unaffected by the
cold ? For if the eye is really a fire, 4 this is not the reason

1 Reading TO de fvftit with X a .

2 The Latin version implies a new solution beginning at this point,
which would necessitate a full stop after eWo? and the reading T) em
dpaiomroi/ (dpaidrarot/ being read by several MSS., including Y a ). This
second question is, however, hardly likely, since, where alternatives
are offered, the first is almost invariably introduced by Trdrepoi/, whereas
here in 1. 5 we have ?} on.

3 an-on-iVm is certainly corrupt : the Latin version of T. G. has
itaque quod his mordacissimum est, ceteris corporis partibus obvium
subire densiora non potest sed perreptat et decidit, which implies a
longer text.

4 Cp. below, 96o a 32, and de Sensu 437* 22 ff., where this view, at

BOOK XXXI. 22 959 b

why it does not feel cold, for its fire is not at any rate
of such a character as to engender heat.

23 Why are tears warm when we let them fall in weeping", 20
but cold when we shed them owing to an affection of the
eyes ? Is it because that which is unconcocted is cold,
while that which is concocted is hot ? Now every malady
certainly proceeds from lack of concoction, and the tears of
those whose eyes are affected are unconcocted and there
fore cold. It is for this reason that physicians regard cold 35
sweating as a sign of serious illness, while on the contrary
they consider that hot sweating tends to get rid of disease. 1
For if the excretion is abundant, the internal heat cannot
concoct it, 2 so that it must necessarily be cold ; but when it

is scanty, the internal heat prevails over it. Now all diseases 30
are caused by excretions. 3

24 Why is it that, though the parts of the body on the right
side are more easily moved, the left eye can be closed more
easily than the right ? Is it because the parts of the body
on the left always contain more moisture, 4 and things that 35
are moist naturally close up more easily ? 5

25 Why is it that though both a short-sighted and an old man
are affected by weakness of the eyes, the former places an
object, if he wishes to see it, near the eye, while the latter
holds it at a distance ? Is it because they are afflicted with
different forms of weakness ? For the old man cannot see 40
the object ; he therefore removes the object at which he is g6o a
looking to the point at which the vision of his two eyes
meets, expecting them to be able to see it best in this
position ; and this point is at a distance. The short
sighted man, on the other hand, can see the object but
cannot proceed to distinguish which parts of the thing

which Empedocles appears at times to hint, is criticized at great
length.

1 Cp. 8;o a 15 ff., and note.

2 SvvavTai in the Teubner text is a misprint for dvvurai.

3 Cp. 8s6 a i. 4 Cp. 96i a 2.

5 The following sentence efra . . . *# avro appears to be hopelessly
corrupt. The Latin version of T. G. apparently translates a different
text.

6 Reading aV e xeZ (Richards).

g6o a PROBLEMATA

at which he is looking are concave and which convex,
5 but he is deceived on these points. Now concavity and
convexity are distinguished by means of the light which
they reflect ; so at a distance the short-sighted man cannot
discern how the light l falls on the object seen ; but near at
hand the incidence of light can be more easily perceived.

Why is man alone, or at any rate more than the other 26
animals, liable to distortion of vision ? 2 Is it because he
10 alone, or more than the other animals, suffers from epilepsy
in his youth. 3 at which time distortion of the vision always
begins ?

Why are men alone among the animals liable to distor- 27
tion of the vision? 4 Is it because they have the smallest
distance between their eyes and their eyes are in a straight

15 line, so that any perversion is very obvious ? Or is it because
the eyes of the other animals tend to be of one colour only,
and if the eyes were of uniform colour there could be no
distortion ? Or is it because man alone in the animal
world is liable to epilepsy, and epilepsy, whenever it
occurs, causes distortion in the eyes as in the other parts
of the body ? Distortion, however, sometimes occurs quite

20 late in life, namely, in those to whom the illness comes
late.

Why is it that we can see better against the light of 28
a lamp or the sun, if we place the hand in front of the
light ? Is it because the light of the sun or of the lamp fall
ing on our vision makes it weaker by its excess of brightness,
since by this excess it destroys those very things 5 which
25 are akin to it ? But if the light is shaded by the hand, it
does not hurt the sight, and the object seen is equally in
the light ; so the sight sees 7 better and the object seen is
just as visible.

1 Reading T^V avyfjv for 777 avyf] with Bonitz.
This problem is more f "
Cp. de Somno 457 a 3-1
Cp. above, chapter 26.

2 This problem is more fully treated in the next chapter.

3 Cp. de Somno 457 a 3-10 and J. I. Beare s note.

5 Reading KOI avra TO. o-vyyevrj (Richards).

6 i. e. the brightness of the eye, which is a fire ; cp. 959 b 17-19 and
note.

7 Reading 6pa for dpa (Richards).

BOOK XXXI. 29 g6o a

29 Why is there a difference between the left and the right
hand x and foot, while this is not so with the eyes and ears ? 2 30
Is it because the elements, when they are pure, show no
variation, but variations occur where the elements are com
pounded ? Now these senses consist of pure elements the
sight of fire a and the hearing of air.

1 Reading rrpbs TCI df^ta. TO. dpicrrepa.

2 Cp. chapters 12, 13, 18. 3 Cp. above, 959 b 17 and note.

g6o a

BOOK XXXII
PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH THE EARS

WHY is it that, though the ears are the most bloodless part I

of the face, they are most affected by blushing 1 in those who

feel shame ? 1 Is it because extraneous moisture naturally

makes its way most easily into a void, and so, when the

moisture is dissolved by the heat engendered in those who

40 feel shame, it collects in the ears ? Or is it because the ears

g6o b are near the temples, where the moisture most collects ?

Now under the emotion of shame the moisture flows into

the face and causes blushing. But the ears have less

depth than any other part of the face and are naturally very

warm and fresh coloured, unless they have been long numbed

5 by the cold ; they are then the most fresh coloured of all

the parts of the face, and so the heat, when it is dispersed,

being nearest the surface in the ears, makes them red.

Why is it that the ear-drums of divers burst in the sea ? 2
Is it because the ear, as it fills with water, is subject to vio
lent pressure, because it retains the breath ? Surely, if this
10 is the reason, the same thing ought to happen in the air.
Or is it because a thing breaks more easily if it does not
yield, and more readily under pressure from what is hard
than from what is soft ? Now that which is inflated is less
yielding, and the ears, as has been said, are inflated because
the breath is retained in them ; and so the water, which is
harder than the air, when it presses upon them bursts them.

1 5 Why do divers tie sponges round their ears ? 2 Is it in 3
order that the sea may not rush violently in and burst the
ear-drums ? For thus the ears do not become full, as they
do when the sponges are removed.

1 Cp. above, xxxi. 3, and below, chapters 8 and 12.

2 Cp. above, chapter 2.

BOOK XXXII, 4 9 6o l

4 Why is the dirt in the ears bitter ? l Is it because sweat is
corrupt ? It is, therefore, a salty, corrupt substance ; and
that which is corrupt and salty is bitter. 20

5 Why do sponge- divers slit their ears and nostrils ? Is it
in order that the breath may pass more freely ? For it is
by this way that the breath seems to pass out ; 2 for it is
said that they suffer more from difficulty of breathing by
being unable to expel the breath, and they are relieved 25
when they can as it were vomit the breath forth. It is
strange, then, that they cannot achieve respiration for the
sake of its cooling effect ; this appears to be a greater
necessity. Is it not quite natural that the strain should be
greater when the breath is held, since then they are swollen
and distended ? But there appears to be a spontaneous
passage of the breath outwards ; and we must next consider 3
whether breathing inwards is so also. Apparently it is ;
for they enable the divers to respire equally well by letting
down a cauldron ; 3 for this does not fill with water, but
retains the air, for it is forced down straight into the water ;
since, if it inclines at all from an upright position, the water
flows in. 4

6 Why do some people cough when they scrape their ears ? 35
Is it because the hearing is connected with the same duct as
the lungs and the wind-pipe ? This is shown by the fact that,

if these parts are filled up, a man becomes deaf. 5 When,
therefore, heat is set up by the friction, moisture is caused
by melting and flows downwards from the duct G into the
wind-pipe and causes coughing.

7 Why is it that, if a hole is pierced in the left ear, it generally 4
closes up more quickly than in the right ear ? It is for this

1 Apollonius, Mirab. 28, seems to be referring to this problem,
which he cites as occurring eV rot? cpvo-iKols Trpo/SA^acrt.

2 Omitting avar^vovcri de . . . eunvotav, which is not rendered by
T. G., and is almost certainly a gloss on OTTCOJ fvnvova-Tfpni &cri. Also
Trovelv yap KT\. clearly explains eieVcu doKei TO Trvev^a and should follow
immediately after it.

3 i. e. used as a diving-bell.

4 Reading opdov yap (avy OTLOVV irapeyKXidfj) flcrpei (W. D. R.).

5 Reading ort, {>) ot nTrAr/pooimu, [KCU] yivovrat eVeoi (W. D. R.).

6 Reading nopov with AP.

Z 2

9 6i a PROBLEMATA

reason that women call the right ear the male and the left
the female . Is it because the left parts of the body are
moister 1 and hotter, and such things close up very quickly ?
This is why green plants grow together again ; and why
5 wounds close up more readily in the young than in the old.
That the parts on the left side of the body are moister is
shown by the fact that they are softer and, generally speak
ing, partake rather of feminine characteristics. 2

Why is it that in those who feel shame the extremities of 8
the ears turn red, but in those who are angry it is the eyes
that do so ? 3 Is it because shame is a cooling in the eyes

10 accompanied by fear, so that the heat naturally leaves the
eyes ? So, when it withdraws thence, it travels to the region
best adapted to receive it, and this is the extremity of the
ears ; for the region of the face is otherwise bony. In those
who are angry the heat travels in the other direction and

15 makes itself most manifest in the eyes owing to their white
colour.

Why is it that buzzing in the ears ceases if one makes a 9
sound ? Is it because the greater sound drives out the less ?

Why is it that, if water has flowed into the ear, one pours 10
olive oil in, though the moisture in the ear cannot pass out
20 through another liquid ? Is it because the oil floats on the
surface of the water and, owing to the adhesive nature of
the oil, the water clings to it when it comes out, the object
being to make the water come out with the oil ? Or is it
in order that the ear may be lubricated and the water there
fore come out ? For oil being smooth acts as a lubricant.

Why is it that the 4 ear-drums of divers are less liable to II
25 burst if they pour olive-oil beforehand into them ? 5 Does

1 Cp. above, 959 b 33.

The text makes no sense, since it merely repeats as a (rr^^lov what
has already been assumed in 1. 2 above. The right sense is certainly
that of the Latin version of T. G., argumentum paries sinistras esse
humidiores quod molliores sunt atque effeminatiores, and we must read
ort vypa p.a\\ov (on /xaAa/ccorfpa) KCU o\a>s 6r]\VKa>Tfpa ra

picrrepa

3

3 Cp. chapters I and 12 and xxxi. 3.
A Reading <ra> &ra as in 96o b 8.
Cp. above, chapters 2 and 3.

BOOK XXXII. II g6i a

the reason for their bursting already mentioned l still hold
good, but the oil poured into the ears cause the sea-water,
which subsequently enters the ear, to glide smoothly over
its surface, just as happens on the exterior parts of the
bodies of those who anoint themselves ? The sea-water
gliding smoothly along does not make a violent impact
upon the inside of the ear, and so does not break the drum. 30

12 Why is it that, although the ears are the most bloodless
part of the face, they turn red in those who feel shame ? 2
Is everything carried to that part which is most devoid of
it ? Now in a man who feels shame the blood seems to be
carried upwards in a heated condition ; it therefore passes 3
into the part which is most devoid of it and causes it to
become red. The same thing happens also in the cheeks.
A further reason is that the skin of the ears, which is tightly 35
stretched, is very thin and therefore very transparent. 4

13 Why is it that no one scrapes out the ear while yawning ?
Is it because, when one yawns, the drum of the ear, by
means of which he hears, is inflated ? That this is so is
shown by the fact that one hears least well while yawning ; 5
for the breath, as happens also in the mouth, 6 finds its way 40
into the interior of the ears and thrusts the membrane out
wards and prevents the sound from entering. If, therefore, 96i b
one touches the seat of hearing when in this condition in
such a way as to scrape it, one might cause considerable
damage to it ; for the impact would be against a resisting
and unyielding surface inflated by the breath, 7 and it is
obvious that the skin 8 and the membrane are far from being 5
solid ; and so great pain is caused and a wound might
result.

1 96o b 9ff. 2 Cp. above, chapters I and 8 and xxxi. 3.

3 Reading with Bonitz els ovv TO KfvwTarov (toy) epvOpiav rroiel.

4 Reading & airoC (Richards). 5 Cp. 9O2 b 9, 904* 16.

6 Putting a comma instead of a full stop after

7 Cp. above, 96o b ioff.

8 Reading TO de (TO) dcppa (Richards).

96I 1

BOOK XXXIII

PROBLEMS CONCERNING THE NOSE

WHY is it that sneezing stops hiccuping but does not I

ro stop eructation ? l Is it because they are not affections of
the same region, but eructation is a cooling and lack of
concoction in the stomach, 2 while hiccuping is a similar
affection of breath and moisture in the region of the lungs ?
Now the regions about the head (the ears, 3 for example)
are closely connected with the lungs. This is proved by
the facts that deafness and dumbness are found together,

15 and that the diseases of the ears become diverted into
affections of the lungs ; also in some persons coughing
results when the ears are scratched. 4 That there is a
connexion between the region of the nose, in which the
sneeze takes place, and the lungs is shown by the fact that
both share in respiration ; and so, while the nose sneezes
when that region becomes hot, the lower region, 5 where
hiccuping takes place, also sneezes in sympathy. Now

20 heat causes concoction ; hence vinegar stops hiccups, as
also does holding the breath if the hiccup is only slight,
for it heats the breath which is constricted. 6 So too in
sneezing the counter-constriction of the breath has this
effect and expiration takes place properly and from the
upper region ; for it is impossible to sneeze without expiring.

25 The impetus then dispels the enclosed breath which is the
cause of the hiccup.

Why is it that if, when one is about to sneeze, one rubs 2
the eye, one sneezes less ? 7 Is it because what causes the
sneeze is a kind of heat, and friction produces heat, which,
30 owing to the close proximity to the eyes of the region in

1 Cp. below, chapters 5, 13, and 17.

2 Which is too far away to be affected.

3 Reading ra a>ra for rols waiv. 4 Cp. 96o b 35.
6 i. e. the lungs. 6 Reading (TO)

1 Cp. chapter 8 and xxxi. I.

BOOK XXXIII. 2 g6i b

which the sneeze occurs, destroys the other heat, just as the
lesser fire fades away before the greater ?

3 Why is it that one generally sneezes twice, and not once
or many times ? Is it because there are two nostrils ? The
channel, therefore, through which the breath passes is 35
divided between the two. 1

4 Why is it that one sneezes more after one has looked at
the sun ? Is it because the sun engenders heat and so
causes movement, just as does tickling the nose with a
feather ? For both have the same effect ; by setting up
movement they cause heat and create breath more quickly
from the moisture ; and it is the escape of this breath which 40
causes sneezing.

5 Why do sneezing and holding the breath and vinegar 962*
stop hiccups ? 2 Does sneezing, since it is a displacement

of the lower breath, act in the same sort of way as medi
cines which, though applied to the upper part of the body, 3
affect the lower part of the stomach ? Holding the breath
stops weak hiccups, because the slight impetus of the 5
breath which comes forth represses and stifles and com
pletely dispels the hiccup, just as happens in coughing,
which 4 ceases if you hold it back. Vinegar stops hiccuping
because by its heat it vaporizes the surrounding moisture,
which prevents eructation ; for eructation takes place when
the moisture in the upper part of the stomach is vaporized 10
and concocted, whereas hiccuping occurs when by the
action of moisture breath is retained in an excessive quan
tity in the region of the lungs ; for this, gaining impetus
and being unable to break through, causes a spasm, and
this spasm is called a hiccup. Hence hiccuping seizes
those who are cold, because the cold causes the moisture
to acquire consistency 5 from the breath, and the rest of the 15
breath, being still 6 enclosed, gives a leap, and its movement
is hiccuping.

1 Reading *a# cmiTcpov ; the MSS. read Ka

2 Cp. chapters I, 13, and 17. 3 i.e. through the mouth.

4 Reading nfpl rrjv (3f)x a {*?)> * l lv KT ^ m

5 Reading a-wco-ravcu (Y a reads crwia-rav), since Trotel requires an
infinitive. 6 Punctuating Trvevparos en irfpi\n^av6^vov KT\.

9 62 a PROBLEMATA

Why do we sometimes pour cold water over a person s 6
face when his nose is bleeding ? Is it because the heat is
20 thus driven inwards ? If, therefore, the blood is near the
surface, it tends to liquefy it.

Why do we regard sneezing as divine, 1 but not coughing 7
or running at the nose ? 2 Is it because it comes from the
most divine part of us, namely, the head, which is the seat
of reasoning ? Or is it because the other affections are the
results of disease, but sneezing is not ?

25 Why does rubbing the eye stop sneezing ? 3 Is it because 8
by this means evaporation is given to the moisture ? For
the eye sheds tears after friction, and sneezing is due to an
abundance of moisture. Or is it because the lesser heat is
destroyed by the greater ? Now the eye when rubbed

30 acquires more heat than is contained in the nose ; and for
this reason, even if we rub the nose itself, the sneezing stops.

Why is it that the emission of other kinds of breath, of 9
wind, for example, and of eructation are not regarded as
sacred, but that of a sneeze is so regarded ? 4 Is it because
of the three regions of the body the head, the thorax, and

35 the lower stomach the head is the most divine? Now
wind is breath from the lower stomach and eructation is
from the upper stomach, but sneezing is from the head ;
because, therefore, this region is most sacred, the breath also
from it is revered as sacred. Or is it because all discharges
of breath show that the above-mentioned parts are in a

40 better state generally (for without any discharge of excre-
g62 b ment 5 the breath in its passage out lightens the body), and
so too sneezing shows that the region of the head is in a
healthy condition and capable of concoction ? For when
the heat in the head overcomes the moisture, the breath
turns into a sneeze. This is why men test the dying by

1 Reading delov (Richards).

2 This problem is dealt with at greater length in chapter 9.

4 This chapter is verbally identical with xxxi. I ; cp. also chapter 2.

4 Cp. chapter 7.

5 Cp. the impersonal use of Sm^copeu/ in Xen. Anab. iv. 8. 20 Kara)
difx^pei avrols ( they were suffering from diarrhoea ), and Plato,
Phaedrus 268 B.

BOOK XXXIII. 9 962*

applying something which will cause sneezing, with the
idea that, if this does not affect them, their case is indeed 5
desperate. Thus sneezing is revered as sacred as being a
sign of health in the best and most sacred region of the body,
and is regarded as a good omen.

IO Why does man sneeze most of all animals ? l Is it
because in him the ducts are wide through which the breath
and scent 2 pass in ? For it is with these w r hen they are full 10
of breath that he sneezes. That these ducts are wide is
shown by the fact that man has a weaker sense of smell
than any other animal, and those who have narrow ducts 3
have a keener sense of smell. If, therefore, the moisture,
the evaporation of which causes sneezing, enters in larger
quantities and more often into wide ducts, and man more
than any other animal has such ducts, he might naturally
be expected to sneeze 4 more often. Or is it because 5 his T 5
nostrils are particularly short, and so the heated moisture
can quickly become breath and be expelled, whereas in
other animals owing to the length of their nostrils it cools
before it can evaporate ?

II Why is sneezing betw r een midnight and midday regarded
as a bad thing, but between midday and midnight as a good 20
thing ? Is it because sneezing seems rather to check those
who are commencing anything and are at the beginning ?
And so, if it occurs when we are intending or beginning
something, we are deterred from action. 6 Now early
morning and the period after midnight are as it were a new
beginning; therefore we carefully avoid sneezing so as not
to hinder the action which has been begun. 7 But towards 25
evening 8 and up to midnight there is as it were an ending

1 This problem is almost verbally identical with x. 18. The subject
is more fully treated in x. 54.

2 Reading 007^ for piV? (Bussemaker), cp. 892 b 23.

3 Reading XfTTTo/ropoi for AeTrroi Trdpot (Bussemaker).

4 Reading TrTapvvoivTO for imipvvvTo.

6 Reading f) on for oaois, cp. 8Q2 b 30.

6 orav peXXwa-iv ap^o/ueVois- a-vfjLpijvai of the MSS. gives no sense, and
orai^ peXXovo-tv r) ap^o/xeVoty (rv/jifirj or something similar must be read.
The Latin version of T. G. renders: itaque cum rem agere pergitmis
atque inter initia stermiisse acciderit.

7 Reading (ro) wp^jueVoy. 8 Reading Se/Xqi/ (Richards).

9 62 b PROBLEMATA

and the contrary of the earlier period, so that the same thing"
that was undesirable becomes, under contrary conditions,
desirable.

Why do the old sneeze with difficulty ? Is it because the 12
ducts through which the breath passes have become par
tially closed ? Or is it because they are no longer able to
30 raise the breath l up with ease, and, when they have done
so, they expel it downwards with a violent effort ?

Why is it that, if one holds the breath, hiccuping ceases ? 2 13
Is it because hiccuping is the result of cooling (hence those
who are frightened and those who are chilled hiccup),
whereas the breath when it is held back warms the in
terior region ?

35 Why do the deaf usually talk through their noses ? 3 Is it 14
because they suffer from lung trouble, since deafnessis simply
a congestion in the region of the lungs ? The voice there
fore does not easily find a passage ; but, just as the breath
of those who are panting or gasping accumulates owing to
their inability to exhale it, so it is with the voice of the

40 deaf. It therefore forces its way even through the nostrils,
g63 a and, as it does so, owing to the friction, causes the echoing
sound. For talking through the nose takes place when the
upper part of the nose, where the openings to the roof of
the mouth are situated, becomes hollow in form ; it then
resounds like a bell, its lower part being narrow.

5 W T hy is sneezing the only phenomenon which does not 15
occur when we are asleep, but takes place practically always
while we are awake ? Is it because sneezing is the result 4
of heat of some kind causing motion in the region from
which the sneeze proceeds (and this is why we look up at
the sun when we want to sneeze c ), whereas when we are
asleep the heat is driven inwards ? 7 This is why the lower
10 parts become warm in those who are asleep, and the large

Reading avrb for ra (Richards). 2 Cp. chapters I, 5, and 17.

3 The same problem is differently treated in xi. 2 and 4.

4 Omitting KU\ after yiverai. 5 Cp. 96 i b 36 ff.

6 Reading KaQevddvTwv 8e for (^) on KaOev&ovTtov, the e being implied
by the preceding jueV. [Bussemaker confirms this reading from Prob.
Ined. (in his edition) ii. 40.]

7 Cp. 86; b 32.

BOOK XXXIII. 15 g63 a

quantity of breath which collects there is the cause of the
emission of semen during sleep. 1 It is only natural, there
fore, that we do not sneeze ; for when the heat (which
naturally sets in motion the moisture in the head, the
evaporation 2 of which causes the sneeze) is withdrawn from
the head, it is only natural that the phenomenon which it
causes does not take place. Men break wind and eruct 15
rather than sneeze when they are asleep, 3 because, as the
region about the stomach becomes hot during sleep, the
moisture there becomes vaporized and, as it does so, is
carried into the nearest parts ; for it is thrust together there
by the breath engendered during sleep. For a man who is 20
asleep is better able to hold than to expel the breath ; there
fore he collects the heat within him. Now when a man
holds his breath he forces it downwards ; for a downward
course is unnatural to the breath, and that is why it is
difficult to hold the breath. The same thing is the cause of 25
sleep also ; for since waking is movement and this move
ment occurs to a great extent in the organs of sensation
\vhile we are awake, it is plain that we should go to sleep
when our organs of sense are at rest. 4 And since it is fire
which creates movement in our parts, and this during sleep 30
is driven inwards and leaves the region of the head, where
the seat of sensation is situated, our organs of sense would
then be most at rest, and this must be the cause of sleep.

16 Why do people shiver after sneezing and passing urine ? 5
Is it because by both actions the veins are emptied of the
warm air which was previously in them, and, when they are 35
empty, other air enters from without colder than that which
was previously in the veins ; and such air entering in causes
shivering ?

17 Why does sneezing stop hiccuping ? G Is it because hic-
cuping (unlike eructation, which comes from the stomach

1 Cp 86; b 9. " Reading with Sylburg and Bekker e

3 Omitting /} eyp/y-yopoTe? as a mistaken gloss on /zdXXov. The position
of KOI epevyovrat after irTtipvvvTai is very awkward and perhaps ^

is also a gloss this time a correct one on

4 Omitting ^wv as a gloss.

5 A slightly longer version of viii. 8.

6 Cp. chapters I, 5, and 13.

9 63 a PROBLEMATA

4 when it receives food) comes from the lungs l and gene-
963** rally results from cooling as an effect of chill or pain or
medicine entering from above ? For the region of the lungs,
being naturally hot, when it is cooled does not emit all the
breath but forms as it were bubbles. This is why hiccup-
5 ing stops if the breath is held (for the region then becomes
warm) ; and the application of vinegar, which is heating,
has the same effect. Heat then collecting from the heat of
the brain also (for the upper regions are connected by
passages with the lungs) and the lungs being warm, the hold
ing of the breath which precedes the sneeze, and the down
ward impetus from above, dissolve the hiccuping.

10 Why is it that those who have crisp hair and whose hair 18
curls are usually rather snub-nosed ? Is it because crisp-
ness resides in fatness, and fatness is accompanied by hard
ness, and the blood being hard is hot, and heat does not
produce excrement, and boniness is formed from excrement,
and the cartilage of the nose is bony therefore a scantiness

15 of this part is a natural result? This theory is supported
by the fact that young children are always snub-nosed.

1 Reading Trvevpovos for Trvevparos [so too Bussemaker], cp. 96l b n
6 de \vynos TOV rrepi irvfvfiova Kard\l/v^is ; also the mention of some part
of the body is required to which 6 TO/TO? (963^ 2) may refer.

963 1

BOOK XXXIV

PROBLEMS CONCERNING THE MOUTH AND
THE PARTS THEREIN

1 WHY is it that those who have spongy teeth are not
long-lived ? l Is it because the long-lived have more teeth,
for instance males have more than females, men than 20
women, and rams than ewes ? Those then who have
spongy teeth apparently resemble those who have fewer
teeth.

2 Why is it that, though the teeth are stronger than the
flesh, yet they are more sensitive to cold ? Is it because
they are closely connected with the pores, in which the
heat, because it is small, is quickly overcome by the cold 2 5
and causes pain ?

3 Why are the teeth more sensitive to cold than to heat,
while the contrary is true of the flesh ? Is it because the
flesh partakes of the mean and is of moderate temperature,
but the teeth are cold and therefore more sensitive to
cold ? 2 Or is it because the teeth consist of narrow pores
in which the heat is scanty, so that they are quickly affected 30
by the opposite of heat ? Now the flesh is warm, so that

it is unaffected by the cold, but is quickly sensitive to heat ;
for it is a case of fire added to fire .

4 Why is it that the tongue is indicative of many things ?
For in acute diseases it indicates fever by the presence 3 of

1 This is the same problem as that of x. 48, differently answered.
The solution of the problem presented here is taken direct from Hist.
Anim. 5oi b 2ofT.

2 Reading \lrvxpov for evavriov. The reading of the MSS., 01 de oSoi/re?
\jrvxpol, OKrre TOV evavriov (i. e. rov Ofp^ov) /udXAot/ aladrjTiKoi, is quite
impossible, since (i) the problem is discussing why the teeth are more
susceptible to cold, (2) the flesh, being hot, is stated (in 11. 30, 31) to be
more susceptible to heat, therefore the teeth, being cold, ought to be
more susceptible to cold. The Latin version, which renders rem
frigidam sentire plenius fiossunt, evidently translates

3 Omitting <al before euv.

9 6s b PROBLEM AT A

blisters upon it ; also the tongues of sheep are particoloured
35 if the sheep are so. Is it because the tongue is capable of
taking up moisture and is situated near the lungs, which
are the seat of fevers? Now all things which are parti
coloured are so because their humours are particoloured,
and that part first takes on colour through which the humour
first passes ; and this is what happens to the tongue. Now
blisters collect on the tongue because it is spongy ; for a
40 blister is as it were an eruption which has not been con
cocted within. 1

964* Why is it that the tongue becomes bitter and salty and 5
acid, but never sweet? Is it because these qualities are
corruptions and so the tongue cannot perceive its own real
nature ?

Why is it that the coloration of the tongue corresponds 6
5 with that of the skin ? 2 Is it because it is really an external
part of the body, though it is enclosed in the mouth, and is it
because the skin on it is thin that even a slight variegation
of colour makes itself visible ? Or is it because it is liquid
that causes change of colour, and the tongue is most affected
by what is drunk ?

10 Why is it that one can emit both hot and cold breath 7
from the mouth ? For one can puff out cold breath and
breathe out warm breath. 3 That the breath is warm can
be demonstrated by placing the hand near the mouth. 4 Or
is the air which is set in motion warm 5 in both cases, but
does he who puffs out breath not set the air in motion all
at once but blow through a partly closed mouth, so that,

15 though he emits but little breath, he sets up motion over
a large area of the outer air, in which the warmth from his
mouth is not apparent owing to its scantiness ? But one
who breathes out breath emits it all at once, and therefore
it is warm. For it is characteristic of puffing out breath

1 Cp. 965^ 1 6.

2 This subject has been already dealt with as part of the problem of
chapter 4 above.

3 Cp. 945 b 1 5 and note. 4 Putting a full stop after xelpa.
5 Reading 0epju6? (Ruelle) for

BOOK XXXIV. 7 964*

to 1 pack the air into a particularly small space ; whereas
breathing out air is emitting it all at once.

8 Why is it that, if one expires violently and with all the
breath at once, it is impossible to expire again ? So too 20
with violent inspiration, which cannot be repeated again
immediately. Is it because expiration is a local dilatation,
and inspiration a local contraction, both of which can be
carried out within certain limits ? Clearly, therefore, the
two processes must be carried out one after another, but
neither can be performed twice consecutively.

9 Why is it that, though there is one passage through 25
which meat and drink pass and another through which we
breathe, if we swallow too large a morsel we choke ? In
this there is nothing strange ; for not only do we choke

if something penetrates into this passage, but we choke
still more if it be blocked. Now the passages through
which we take food and through which we breathe are 3
parallel to one another ; when, therefore, too large a
morsel is swallowed, the respiration is also blocked, so that
there is no way out for the breath.

10 Why is it that men are very long-lived who have a cut
right across the hand ? 2 Is it because those animals which
are badly articulated are short-lived and weak ? As an
instance of weakness we may take young animals, and of 35
shortness of life the aquatic creatures. Clearly then those
who are well articulated must be the opposite, 3 namely,
those in whom even those parts are best articulated which
are by nature badly articulated. Now the inside of the
hand is the least well articulated part of the body.

II Why is it that, in deep breathing, when we draw in the
breath the stomach contracts, but when we expire it fills
out ? Now the contrary of this might be expected to
occur. Is it because in breathing the stomach is com
pressed downwards by the flanks and then appears to
expand again, like bellows ?

1 Reading ro for r&>, but the corruption is perhaps deeper, though
the sense is clear.

2 The so-called line of life . The same problem is treated in a
slightly different form in x. 49. z i. e. long-lived.

9 64 b PROBLEMATA

5 Why do we respire ? Does the breath dissolve into fire, 12
just as the moisture dissolves into breath ? The heat, then,
of nature, when the greater part of the breath produces
fire, causes pain and pressure upon the ducts ; and that is
why we emit the fire with the breath. 1 Now when the
breath and fire go forth, the ducts contract and are

I0 cooled, and pain results ; we therefore draw the breath in
again. Then when we have opened the breath-ducts 2 and
given them relief, fire is again engendered and we again
feel discomfort, and therefore expel it and continue to do
so indefinitely ; just as we continually blink as the part

I5 round the eye cools and becomes dry. Also we walk
without ;J giving attention to the manner of our walking,
the intellect by itself 4 guiding us. In like manner, there
fore, we carry out the process of breathing ; for we do so
by contriving to draw in air, and then continue to draw
it in.

1 The Teubner text omits a whole line here by haplography and
should read TO rrvp (/uera TOV nvevp-aros. orav 8e f^eXOr] TO Trveiyxa /cat TO

7Tt)p), O-VfJLmTTTOVTWV KT\.

2 Reading -n-vcv^aros with Y a X a .

3 Reading ov for <wv with Bussemaker.

4 Reading awf/y for avrols, unless we suppose a lacuna after rtjs
Btavoias avrols.

964 1

BOOK XXXV

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH THE EFFECTS
OF TOUCH

I WHY do we shudder more when some one else touches us
than when we touch ourselves ? Is it because the touch
of a part of some one else has more power to produce
sensation than that of a part of oneself, since that which is
connected by growth with the sense-organ is imperceptible?
Also anything which occurs unawares and suddenly is more 25
frightening, and fright is a process of cooling; and both
these qualities are possessed by the touch of another as
contrasted with one s own touch. And, speaking generally,
passive sensation is produced either solely by some one else
or at any rate in a greater degree 1 than by oneself; as
happens for example in tickling.

2 Why do we feel tickling in the armpits and on the soles 30
of the feet ? Is it owing to the thinness of the skin ? And
do we feel it most where we are unaccustomed to being
touched, as in these parts and the ears ?

3 Why is it that every one does not shudder at the same
things ? 2 Is it because, just as we do not all feel pleasure
or pain at the same things, so we do not shudder at the
same things ? For the same sort of cooling process takes 35
place. 1 So some people shudder when a garment is torn,
others when a saw is being sharpened or drawn through
wood, others when pumice-stone is being cut, others when
the millstone is grinding on stone. 4

4 Why is it that, though the summer is warm and the
winter cold, bodies are colder to the touch in summer than 965*

1 Transposing 77 plXXoi/ and j? fj.6vov (Richards). 2 Cp. vii. 5.

3 i. e. when we shudder and when we feel pain.

4 i. e. when there is no grist in the mill, ovos is always used
of the upper millstone.

C45-25 A a

9 6s a PROBLEMATA

in winter? Is it because perspiration and the act of per
spiring cool the body, and this takes place in summer
but not in winter? Or is it because cold and heat are
5 driven inwards 1 inversely to the seasons, 2 and in the
summer the cold takes refuge within and therefore causes
perspiration to be given off, whereas in winter the cold
keeps the perspiration in and the body vaporizes it, as does
the earth ?

Why do the hairs bristle upon the skin ? 3 Is it because 5
they naturally stand erect w r hen the skin is contracted, 4
10 and this contraction occurs owing to cold and certain other
conditions ?

Why is it that no one can tickle himself ? Is it because 6
one also feels tickling by another person less if one knows
beforehand that it is going to take place, and more if one
does not foresee it ? A man will therefore feel tickling
least when he is causing it and knows that he is doing so.
Now laughter is a kind of derangement and deception (and
15 so men laugh when they are struck in the midriff; for it is
no ordinary part of the body with which one laughs 5 ).
Now that which comes unawares tends to deceive, and it is
this also which causes the laughter, whereas one does not
make oneself laugh.

Why is it that we feel tickling in particular on the lips ? 7
Is it because the part which feels tickling must be situated
20 not far from the seat of sensation ? Now the lips are
essentially in this position, and so of all parts of the head
the most sensitive to tickling are the lips, which are fleshy,
and therefore very easily set in motion.

Why is it that a man bursts out laughing if one scratches g
the region of his armpits, though he does not do so when

1 For the doctrine of avrnrepifrTacrt.? see note on 867 a 32.

2 i. e. cold drives heat inwards and vice versa ; cp. 888 a 34 ff., where
hot water is said to drive cold inwards.

3 The same problem occurs in viii. 12.

4 Reading o-vo-rrdaraan for o-Tratroocrtj cp. 888 a 39.

5 Laughter being a contraction of the muscles of the midriff or
diaphragm, which according to the Greeks enclosed the seat of
intelligence.

BOOK XXXV. 8 965*

any other part is tickled ? And why does a man sneeze
if he tickles his nostrils with a feather ? Is it because these 25
parts are regions where the small veins are situated, and
when these are cooled or undergo the opposite process l
they become moist or dissolve 2 into breath as the result of
the moisture ? (Similarly, if one compresses the veins in
the neck of one who is asleep, an extraordinarily pleasant
sensation is caused/ 5 ) And when the breath is engendered
in greater abundance, we emit it in a single mass. 4 Simi- 30
larly also in sneezing, when we warm the moisture in the
nostrils and scratch them with a feather, we dissolve it
into breath ; and when the breath becomes superabundant
we expel it.

9 Why is it that we often shudder after taking solid food ?
Is it because when food which is cold enters the body
it prevails at first over the natural heat rather than vice 35
versa ?

10 Why is it that an object which is held between two
crossed fingers 5 appears to be two ? Is it because we
touch it at two sentient points ? For when we hold the
hand in its natural position we cannot touch an object
with the outer 7 sides of the two fingers.

1 i. e. become hot.

2 Reading vypaivovrai . . . ftiaXvovrai.

3 Reading axnrfp lav . . . <jf>Xe/3a? KaOevdova-w J7/*u>, fjftovr] OdVjJMfria ris
tvriv (W. D. R.).

4 And this causes an explosion of laughter.

5 Reading rot? eVaAAu (Wn Aoi? (T. G. renders digitis vice mutata
implicatis), cp. 958^ 14, 15 and note.

6 Reading Oiyiiv (W. D. R.) for elneiv.

7 Reading e/cros-, from T. G., for IVTOS.

A a 2

BOOK XXXVI
PROBLEiMS CONNECTED WITH THE FACE

965 b WHY is the face chosen for representation in portraits?!
Is it because the face shows best what the character of a
person is ? Or is it because it is most easily recognized ?

Why is it that one perspires most freely on the face, 2
though it is far from being fleshy ? 1 Is it because parts
5 which are rather moist and rare perspire freely, and the
head has these characteristics? For it contains an abun
dance of natural moisture ; this is shown by the veins
which extend from it and the discharges which it produces,
and the fluidity of the brain and the numerous pores.
That there are numerous pores extending outwards is
10 shown by the presence of the hair. The perspiration
then comes not from the lower parts of the body but
from the head ; and so one perspires most readily and
freely 2 on the forehead, for it is highest in position and
moisture flows down and not up.

Why do eruptions occur more frequently on the face 3
than elsewhere ? Is it because this part contains rarities
15 and moisture ? That this is so is shown by the growth of
hair on it and by its power of sensation ; and an eruption
is as it were an efflorescence of unconcocted moisture.

1 This problem occurs also in Bk. ii. 17.

2 Reading Trp&Tov (KOI^ /xaXicrra, cp. 868 a 2.

965 1

BOOK XXXVII

PROBLEMS CONNECTED WITH THE WHOLE

BODY

I WHY is it that, though the body is in a state of continual 20
flux, and effluvia are given off from the excrements, the
body is only lightened if it perspires ? l Is it because
the excretion in the form of effluvia is too little (for
when liquid is transformed into air, much air is formed
out of little liquid) ? For what is excreted 2 is more, which 25
accounts for the excretion taking longer to begin.

2 And what is the reason of this ? Is it because its exit
takes place through smaller pores ? For the viscous and the
adhesive matter is expelled with the moisture because it
mingles with it, but it cannot be expelled with the breath ;
and it is this thick matter in particular which causes pain.
Therefore also vomiting lightens the body more than
sweating, because that which is vomited, being thicker and 3
more substantial, carries away this viscous matter with it.
Or is there a further reason, namely, that the region in
which the viscous and the adhesive matter is, is situated at

a distance in relation to the flesh (and so it is difficult
to make it change its position), but near to the stomach ?
For it is engendered either in or close to it ; and therefore 35
it is difficult to get rid of 3 it in any other way.

3 Why is it that friction produces flesh? Is it because
heat has great power to increase what is in the body ? For
the bulk of what already exists in it becomes greater if the

1 This and the following chapter are almost verbally identical with
ii. 22, but the problem is here divided into two.

2 i. e. in sweat.

3 Reading 8vaf dya>yoi> from 868 b 1 1 .

9 6s b PROBLEMATA

body is in continual motion and if our internal humours
are carried upwards and vaporized, and this occurs as
g66 a a result of friction ; whereas in the absence of this, the
body wastes away and decreases. Or is it because the flesh
increases in bulk by nutriment 1 as the result of heat (for
anything 1 which is hot has the power to attract moisture,
5 and the nutriment distributed in the flesh is moist and the
flesh takes up moisture better by being- rare, for the rarer
a thing is the more it can absorb, like a sponge), whereas
friction makes the flesh well ventilated and rare and pre
vents congestion in the body ? Now if there is no conges
tion, there can be no wasting either ; for atrophy and

10 wasting are the result of conglomeration. But the better
ventilated and the rarer and the more homogeneous the
parts of the body are the more likely they are to acquire
bulk, for they are better able to take up nutriment and to get
rid of excrements, since the flesh must be rarefied and not
densified in order to promote health. 2 For just as a city or

15 locality is healthy which is open to the breezes (and that is
why the sea too is healthy), so the body is healthier if the
air can circulate in it than when it is in the contrary condi
tion. For either there ought to be no excrement 3 in the
body, or else the body ought to be able to get rid of it as
soon as possible and be in such a condition that it can
reject the excrement as soon as it receives it and be always

20 in a state of motion and never at rest. For that which
remains stationary putrefies (standing water, for example),
and that which putrefies creates disease ; but that which is
rejected passes away before it becomes corrupt. This then
does not occur if the flesh is dense (the ducts being as it were

25 blocked up), but it does happen if the flesh is rare. One
ought not therefore to walk naked in the sun ; for the flesh
thereby solidifies and acquires an absolutely fleshy consis
tency ; for the internal moisture remains, but the surface
moisture is expelled in the form of vapour, just as in roast
meat the inner portions are moister than in boiled meat.

1 Reading rfj rpo^fj (W. D. R.).

2 966 a 13-34 is almost verbally identical with 86s b 18-37 and
884 a 24- b 7.

3 Reading /^SeV (Trfpirrco/za), r) TOVTOV, cp. 865 b 2i, 884 a 29.

BOOK XXXVII. 3 9 66 a

Nor ought one to walk in the sun with the chest bare,
for then the sun draws out the moisture from the best 3
constructed parts of the body, which 1 least require to
be deprived of it; but it is rather the inner parts which
need to be dried, 2 for, because they are remote, it is
impossible to produce perspiration except by a violent
effort ; but it is easy to exhaust the moisture in the chest,
because it is near the surface.

4 Why is it that, when we are chilled, the same heat causes 35
more burning and pain ? 3 Is it because owing to its
density the flesh holds the heat which comes into contact
with it ? This is the reason why lead becomes hotter than
wool. Or is the passage of the heat violent because the
body is congealed by cold ?

5 Why does dry friction render the flesh solid ? Is it g66 b
because heat is engendered by the friction and the moisture

is used up ? Furthermore, the flesh when rubbed becomes
dense, 4 and everything becomes denser and solider the 5
more it is rubbed. This can be seen in many examples ;
dough, for instance, and clay and similar substances, if you
pour water into them and spread them out, remain moist
and fluid, but, if you apply more friction, they quickly
densify and solidify and become viscous.

6 Why does friction produce more flesh than running ? Is 10
it because running cools the flesh and makes it less ab
sorbent of nutriment, but part of the nutriment is shaken
downwards, while the part on the surface, 5 owing to the

1 Reading , as in the parallel passage 865 b 34.

2 Punctuating (as in the parallel passage 865 b 32-5) ovde ru orq&j
yvp.va {\Qvra ftadieiv eV j]Xi &> dnb yap . . . dfpaipfaecos, dXXa juaXXof ra
evrbs r]pavTov.

3 i. e. than it would if we were not chilled. This chapter is almost
verbally identical with viii. 19.

4 This is a direct contradiction of the doctrine of chapters 3 and 6
( a 7> b I 5)j where it is stated that friction rarefies the flesh.

8 Reading eVwroXfJff [so too Bussemaker] for the meaningless eVl
noXXov, which probably arose from the dittography of the X and the
subsequent assimilation of the gender to that of Qeppov ; cp. a 27 TO 8c
UTraXXdrTernt

9 66 b PROBLEMATA

exhaustion of the natural heat, becomes quite thin and is
expelled in the form of breath ? But the hand by friction
"5 makes the flesh rare and able to take up nutriment. More
over, the external contact, opposing by its pressure the
natural impetus of the flesh, makes it compact and drives
it back upon itself.

9 66 l

BOOK XXXVIII

PROBLEMS CONCERNING THE COLORATION 20
OF THE FLESH

1 WHY is it that the sun bleaches wax and olive oil, but
darkens the flesh ? l Is it because it bleaches the former
by extracting the water from them (for that which is moist
is naturally black owing to the admixture of the earthy
element), whereas it scorches the flesh ?

2 Why have fishermen reddish hair, and purple-fishers and 25
in short all who work on the sea ? Is it because the sea is
hot and full of dryness because it is salty ? Now that
which is of this nature, like lye and orpiment, makes the
hair reddish. Or is it because they are warmer in their
outer parts, but their inner parts are chilled, because, owing 30
to their getting w r et, the surrounding parts are always
being dried by the sun ? And as they undergo this
process, the hair being dried becomes fine and reddish.
Furthermore all those who live towards the north have fine,
reddish hair.

3 Why is it that running in clothing and anointing the
body under the clothing with oil makes men pale skinned, 2 35
whereas running naked makes them ruddy ? Is it because
ventilation produces a ruddy colour, while suffocation has
the opposite effect and causes :! pallor, because the moisture
on the surface is heated up and does not cool ? Now per
spiring in clothes and anointing the body under the cloth
ing both have the same effect, namely, that the heat is
enclosed. But running naked makes the flesh ruddy for 967
the opposite reason, because the air cools the excrements

1 Cp. below, chapter n.

2 The same subject is dealt with in Hippocr. de Diaet. ii. 63 and
Theophrastus de Sudore, 39.

3 Reading" TOvvavriov, &iu fie.

9 67 a PROBLEMATA

which form 1 and ventilates the body. Further, the oil,
which is moist and thin, being smeared over the body
under the clothing- and blocking up the pores, does not
5 allow either the moisture and breath from the body to
escape or the external air to penetrate inwards. Therefore
the moist excrements being choked in the body decay and
produce pallor.

Why is it that the ventilation of the flesh makes it 4
ruddy ? Is it because pallor is as it were a corruption of
the flesh ? When, therefore, the surface is moist and hot,
10 it becomes yellow unless it is cooled and gives off the heat
in the form of breath.

Why is it that those who perspire are ruddy as a result 5
of their exercises, whereas athletes are pale ? Is it because
as the result of moderate exertion the heat is burnt up and
comes to the surface, whereas by constant exertion it is
15 drained off with the perspiration and breath, the body
being rarefied by exertion ? When, therefore, the heat
comes to the surface, a man becomes ruddy, just as he does
when he is hot or ashamed ; but when the heat fails, he is
pallid. Now ordinary persons indulge in moderate exercise,
whereas athletes are constantly training.

20 Why are men more sunburnt who sit still in the sun than 6
those who take exercise ? 2 Is it because those who are
in motion are as it were fanned by the breath owing to
the movement of the air which they set up, whereas those
who are sitting still do not undergo this process ?

Why does the sun scorch, while fire does not ? Is it 7
25 because the heat of the sun is finer and can penetrate
farther into the flesh ? 3 Fire, on the other hand, if it does
scorch, only raises the surface of the flesh by creating what
we call blisters, and does not penetrate within.

g67 b Why is it that fire does not make men black, whereas 8
the sun does so, and why does fire blacken earthenware,

1 And so causes them to evaporate.

2 Cp. Theophrastus, de Igne, 36.

3 Cp. Theophrastus, op. cit., 38.

BOOK XXXVIII. 8 967*

while the sun does not ? Or do they produce their effects by
dissimilar means, the sun blackening the flesh by scorching
it and the fire permeating the earthenware with the soot
which it sends up ? (Now soot consists of fine ember-dust, 5
formed by the simultaneous breaking-up and burning of
the charcoal.) The sun, then, makes men black, while the
fire does not do so, because the heat of the sun is gentle
and owing to the smallness of its parts it can scorch the
flesh itself; and so, because it does not set the flesh on fire,
it does not cause pain, but it blackens it because it scorches it. 10
Fire, on the other hand, either does not kindle at all or else
penetrates within ; for what is burnt by fire also becomes
black, but it does not burn merely that part of the body in
which the colour is situated.

9 Why do men become darker complexioned as they
become older ? l Is it because anything which decays
becomes blacker, except mildew ? And old age and decay
are the same thing. 2 Further, since the blood when it T 5
dries up becomes blacker, it is only likely that the older
men are the darker they are ; for it is the blood which
naturally gives colour to our bodies.

10 Why is it that, of persons engaged in the preparation of
cereals, those who handle barley become pale and are 20
subject to catarrh, while those who handle wheat are
healthy ? 3 Is it because wheat is more easily concocted
than barley, and therefore its emanations are also more
easily concocted ?

11 Why is it that the sun bleaches olive oil but darkens the
flesh ? 4 Is it because it extracts the earthy element from
the olive oil, and this, like the earthy element in wine, is 25
the black part of it ? Now it darkens the flesh because it
burns it; for that which is earthy always becomes black
when burnt.

1 Cp. 89o a 16 ff. 2 Reading TUVTO for roCro.

3 This problem is identical with xxi. 24, where see note on 929 b 28 ;
cp. also 863 b i ff.

4 The problem here dealt with is the same as that of chapter I above,
but somewhat differently answered.

INDEX

Abortion, occurs most frequently

in spring, 86o a i8ff.
Abscesses, 885*31; diagnosis of,

863 a 8.
Accompaniment, musical, adds to

the pleasure of a solo, 9i8 a 22;

antiphonal a. more pleasing

than * symphonic , 91 8 b 30 ; see

also Flute, Lyre.
Acorn, 925*32, 37, 930*16,

931*7.
Acquittal of a wrongdoer less

serious than condemnation of the

innocent, 95i a 39-
Actors, 901*2, 904*4, 916*35;

their aim is to give pleasure,

* 37 ; are imitators, 918* 28.
Aegean Sea, 932*21, 25.
Agathyrsi, 92O a i.
Age, see Old age.
Ague, 947*21.
Air, Problems connected with the,

937*30-940*15-

Air, not moistened by contact with
water, 938 a i7fT., 939 a i7rT. ;
cannot penetrate through solids,
a io; cannot saturate anything,
a 29 ; does not rise, a 39 ; warmer
in small quantities, * 23 ; does
not become corrupt, * 27 ; move
ment of, in large rooms, 94O a 3.

Ajax, afflicted by melancholy, 95 3 a
21.

Alcmaeon, 9i6 a 34.

Aleian Plain, the, 953 a 24.

Alum, 937 b 23-

Anaxagoras, 903*8, 914* 10.

Anger, physical effect of, 86g a 5,
947*23 ; prevents chill, 889 a 15 ;
makes the eyes red, 957*9,

Angles, right, 913*10, 28, 33, 36 ;

notes compared to, 9i8 a 2o; ob

jects thrown rebound at similar

a.s, 913* 6 ff., Q.i5*iSff.
Animals, growth in, 9i6 a 12; origin

of, 892* 26.
Animate Things, Problems con

nected with, 915* 36-9 i6 a 39.

Anise, 949 a 2.

Anointing, a cure for fatigue, 863*
19, 884 b 37 ; of the eyes by child
less women, 876*12; its effect
upon odour, 908*24, 34; under
the clothing produces pallor,
966*35.

1 Antiphonal , accompaniment, 918*
30; notes, *39, 9i9 a 2, 8, 10.

Antiphony , 918* 34 ; more pleas
ing than homophony , 92i a 7;
how produced, a 9.

Antistrophe, 9i8 b 13, 19.

Aphrodite, 953 b 3!; see also
Cypris.

Apoplexy, 86o a 33 , 874*29, 875*7,
37, 887 a 24, 903*9, 905 a i7, * 35,

954 a 24-

Apples, 923* 5.

Aquatic animals, short-lived, 896* I.

Arabia, 906* 1 8, 9o8 a 14.

Arcadia, winds in, 947 a 15 ; no out
lets to the sea in, a 19.

Archelaus, King of Macedonia,
954*32.

Archytas, 9i5 a 29.

Arcturus, 859 a 23.

Artemis, 894* 34.

Articulation, vocal, effect of drun
kenness on, 875* 27 ff. ; of the
body, 896* iff, 964 a 34ff.

Arts, analogy of the, 895* 32.

Ashes, take up no space in water,
938*26 ff. ; attract water, 939 a i.

Asses, 893*27, 894 b i2, ^97 b 35,
898*11.

Astronomer, 9i7 a 8.

Atarneus, hot waters at, 937* 7.

Athletes, 862*22; unable to bear
cold, 888 a 23 ; paleness of, 967**
13.

Athletic contests, prizes for, 956*
16.

Athos, Mt., no wind on, 944* 13.

Atlantic, 946 a 29.

Atrabilious, see Melancholic.

Attica, 942 a 19, 946*33, 947 a 2 ;
effect of soil in A. upon plants,
925* 8 ff.

INDEX

Bakers, 863* i, 929*26, 96; b 19.
Baldness, 8;8 b 23, 893* 38, 897*23,

29 ; not found in those blind

from birth, 957*236^.
Barley, 863 a 34ff, 929*2? 5 less

nourishing than wheat, 927 a 17 ;

gluing b. with water , 929 b 17.
Barley-cake, 927 b 2i, 32, 928 a I,

929*7, b 19.
Barley-gruel, 927*11.
Barley-meal, Barley-cake, and the

like, Problems connected with,

927*10-930*3.
Barley-meal, 927*23, b 16, 33,

928*35, 929 a 8, ii, 25, 31, 36,

b 9, 36, 39-

Baths, a cure for fatigue, 863 b 19,
884 b 36; theft from the, 952*
1 7 ff. ; see also Vapour baths.

Beans, 890*25.

Beautiful, the, as an object of
desire, 896 b 10.

Beauty, not communicable to
others, 951*5.

Bellerophon, a victim of melancholy,
953*21.

Bellowings , subterranean, 937 b
39 ^

Bile, 86o b 22, 948 b 10 ; black b.
(melancholy), 86o b 24 ; its com
position and effects, 954* 14 ff. ;
see also Melancholic.

Biliousness, causes the feet to swell,
859 b 2 ; more serious in winter
than summer, b 5.

Birds, 895 b 3, 12, 896 b 32, 897 b 10,
898*4, 17, 27; are lustful, 880*
35, 893 b 10 ; have no bladder,
891*18 ; legs of 895*22.

Birth, claims of, preferred to pro
visions of wills, 95o b 5 ff.

Black Sea, 932*21.

Bladder, 924*14, 936*31, 949 a I I
human, 8g5 b 5 ; of cloven-hoofed
animals, 895* 39 ; none in birds,
89i b i8; none in some fishes,
895 b i ; effect of garlic on, 908* 7.

Blight, 862*25.

Blind, those b. from birth do not
become bald, 95 7 b 23 ff.

Blood, staunching of, 862*13;
becomes darker in the old, 967 b
15 ff.

Blows, effect of, 88g b 27, 32, 890*
37,891*1.

Blushing, 889* 20, 903* 3, 905* 7,
957 b 10, 960*366% 961*8, b 3 1.

Boar, wild, 896*23.

Body, Problems connected with the

whole, 965 b 2o~966 b 19.
Body, cooler to the touch in

summer, 964 b 39 ff.
Boreas, see North wind.
Bowels, effect of fear on the, 869* 3,

947 b i4, 19, 29, 948 b 35> 949 a i-
Brain, the, 891*11, 17, 896*33,

963 b 7 ; the source of semen,

897 b 23.

Brambles, 906*1 1.
Brave, the, fond of wine, 948* 13;

see also Courage.
Bread, lighter if mixed with salt,

927*35; effect of kneading upon,

929* 17 ; effect of toasting upon,

b 30 ; see also Loaves.
Breath, can be emitted both hot

and cold, 964* loff.
Breathing, nature of, 964 h 5 ; effect

of deep, 964* 39 ff.
Briers, 906* n.
Bronze, 89o b 9 ; b. vessels resonant,

99 b 33-
Bruises, Scars, and Weals, Problems

connected with, 889 b 10-891* 5.
Bruises, cures for, 890*25, b 7, 20.
Bubbles, bases of, are white and

throw no shadows, 91 3*1 9 ff. ;

why hemispherical, * 29 ff. ; in

boiling water, 936 b 2; in soup,

b 36 ; air in b.s not wet, 939* 25.
Bulls, effect of castration upon,

894*23, 897 b 26; sacred b.s,

938* i.

Cabbage, prevents the ill effects of

drinking, 873* 37 ff. ; useful as

a purge, b 2.

Caecias, see North-East wind.
Calm, usually occurs at midday or

midnight, 938* 23 ; on high

mountains, 944 b 12 ff.
Caper-plant, does not grow on

tilled ground, 924* I.
Castration, effects of, 894 b 19 ff. ;

897 b 26 ff.
Catarrh, 92 9 b 27.
Cauterization, X surgery, 863* 10 ;

X drugs, 863* 19; as a cure for

running at the eyes, 957*25.
Celery, benefited by salt water,

923* 6 ; method of cultivation,

b 10.
Chaeremon, tragic poet, quoted,

873*25.

INDEX

Chaff, used for preserving fruit,
931*23.

Chilblains,careof,S65 b 38 ff.,866 a 5ff.

Children, dislike wine, 872 a 2 ; have
hot and moist temperaments, a 7 ;
methods of communication, 8o.5 a
13; phenomenon of speech in,
9<D2 a 5ff. ; have shrill voices,
a 32 ; hesitate in speech, b 16.

Chill and Shivering, Problems
connected with, 887 b io-8S9 b 7.

Chill, makes the flesh livid, 887^
10 ; prevents sleep, b 15, 889 b 4;
affects stout persons most, 887 b
32 ; effect on the tongue, 888 b 7;
effect on the hair, 888 a 39, b 16 ff ;
prevented by anger, 889 a i5;
caused by fear, a 24, 948 b 13 ;
see also Cold.

Choking, cause of, 964 a 25 ff.

Chorus, c.-singers practise before
taking food, 9oi b 2, 9O4 b 3 ; con
sisting of free citizens, 9i3 b 2o;
songs of, antistrophic, 9i8 b 27;
less imitative than actors, o,i8 b
29; large c. keeps better time,
9i9 u 36ff., 922 a 3off. ; modes
suitable and unsuitable for tragic
c., 92o a 8 ff, 922 b 10 ff. ; function
of, b 26.

Circle, human life is a c. , 916* 28.

Cistern, 899^7.

Clay, a cure for bruises, 89O a 26.

Clazomenae, 87 5 a 35.

Clock, water-c., 866 b 12, 868 b 23 ;
phenomena connected with the,
9i4 b 9ff.

Cloud-winds, 94o b 30, 94i b 37.

Cloudy weather hotter than clear,

937 b 33-

Coat, shedding of, by animals,, 893*
4ff., 8 9 8 a 33-

Cold, effect of, on those who are ill,
or in pain, or angry, 887 b 19 ff. ;
affects the extremities most, b 26 ;
effect on the feet, b 29 ; athletes
unable to bear c., 888 a 23 ; reason
of c. at dawn, b 27, 938* 32, 939 b
5 ; excessive cold causes brutish-
ness, 909 a i3; c. climate makes
men courageous, b 9, 9io a 39; see
also ChilL

Coloration of the Flesh, Problems
connected with the, 9(56 b 20-96 7 b
27.

Coloration oftheeyes,892 a 1, 9io a 13.

Cone, the vision has the form of a

c., 872 a 37, 91 i b 5, 1 6, 20 ; formed

by the light of the sun through

a rectangular hole, 9i2 b 15 ff. ;

movement of a c., 91 3 b 39 ff.
Conjurer, 9i7 a 8.
Consonants, 895 a 9.
Contagiousness of diseases, cause

of, 886 b 4ff,887 a 22fT.
Continence and Incontinence, Prob

lems connected with, 949 a 21-

95<D a 19.
Continence, most praised in the

young and wealthy, 949 b 20.
Contraries, sometimes produce the

same result, 874 b 36, 888 a 32 ;

destroy one another, 8S9 a 6;

mingling of, in music, 92i a 2;

change into one another, 94i b 6.
Cooking, effect of, on vegetables,

923 a 17, 21.
Copper, 864 a 34 ; surgical instru

ments made of, 863 a 25 ff. ; burns

inflicted by, a 31 ; curative effects

of, 89o a 27, b 2o, 37.
Corn, cut off by frost, 935 a 1 8 ; see

also Wheat, Barley.
Coughing, 89i a S, 962*22; caused

by scraping the ears, 96o b 35.
Counting, by tens, 9io b 23ff. ; on

the fingers, b 39 ; by fours, 91 i a 2.
Courage, Problems connected with

Fear and, 947 b io-949 a 20.
Courage, why so highly honoured,

948 a 3iff.
Courageousness of those who live

in cold regions, 9<D9 b 9.
Cowardice of those who live in hot

regions, 9O9 b 9, 9io a 38.
Crocodiles eggs, 926 a 9.
Crow, does not change its colour,

89i b 16.

Cucumber, 923* 13, 925 b 3i.
Cultivated X wild plants, 896 a 6,

924 a 1 8, 927 a 4.
Cylinder, path described by, in

motion, 9l3 b 37-
Cypris, 896* 24.
Cyrene,

Dawn, reason of coldness at, 888 b

27, 938 a 32, 939 b 5-
Deaf, the, speak through their

nostrils, 899 a 4, 15, 962 b 35 ff.
Deafness, 898 b 28, 96o b 37 ; often

found with dumbness, 96i b i4.
Death, a process of cooling, 874 b i ;

as a penalty for theft, 95 3 a 3.

INDEX

Defect, a cause of disease, 859*3.

Defendant, position of, on the right
hand in court, 95i*i5ff. ; wins
if the votes are equal, 95i a 2off,

Deposit, robbery of a, more serious
than of a loan, 95o a 28 ff, b 28 ff.

Dew, 9 38 a 34, 939 b 36.

Diameter, 9io b 11 ff, 19 ff.

Dice, loaded, 913* 35, 9i5 b 8.

Diet, in disease, 863 a 34ff, 865*
35 ff, 866 a 8 ff. ; in summer, 863 b
24, 885 a 2 ; reduction of, healthy,
864 b 36, 884 a 22 ; human d. moist
rather than dry, 897 a 19, 36 ;
effect of monotonous d., 928 a 33,

Dionysius, the tyrant, 949*25.

Dionysus, 953 b 3i.

Disease, due to excess or defect,
859 a 2; cured by excess, a 5, or
by starvation, a 7 ; effect of the
seasons on, 859 b 9ff., 86i b I ff,
21 ff. ; effect of the weather on,
859 b 2iff. ; contagiousness of,
886 b 4ff, 887 a 22ff.

Disputations, as a mental exercise,
9i6 b i8ff.

Dithyrambs, 9i8 b 19.

Divers, their ear-drums burst in the
sea, 96o b 8 ff. ; protect their ears
with sponges, b 15 ff. ; slit their
ears and nostrils, b 2off. ; use
cauldrons as diving-bells, b 32.

Dizziness, occurs in those standing
rather than in those sitting, 885 b

35-

Doctors, aim of treatment by, 956 a
28 ff.

Dogs, prolific, 892 b i, 898** 13;
change their coats, 893 a 4 ; bad-
tempered after bearing young,
894 b 12 ; produce monstrosities,
898* 12 ; Melitaean d.s, 8c;2 a 2i ;
wild in India, 895 b 25-

Dog-star, 859*23, 94i a 37, b 3> 8,
944* 4.

Dough, 927 b 33, 38, 928* 27, 929* 6,
b i8.

Dreams, 956 b 39 ; cause of, 957 a 7,
23-

Dropsy, 887*24; drunkards liable
to, 87^25.

Drugs, effect of, 863 b 4off., 864*
3ff, 23 ff, 865 a 3ff.; X surgery
and cauterization, 863 a I9ff.

Drunkards, Drunken, the, cannot

endure cold, 87i a I ff., b 33 ff. ;
the slightly d. more troublesome
than the very d., 871* 7 ff, 875 a
29 ff. ; infertile, 87 i a 23 ; why the
d. tremble, a 27 ff., 874 b 22 ff. ;
often dropsical or rheumatic,
87i b 25; more sensitive to salty
and bad water, 872 a 9ff, 873 b
37 ff. ; incapable of sexual inter
course, 872 b i5ff, 875 b 39ff ;
easily moved to tears, 874 b 8 ff. ;
those who like sweet wine do not
become d., 87 5 b I ff. ; fond of
the sun, b 5ff, 34 ff; voices of,
broken, 904 b i ; deep voice of,

95 a 25-

Drunkenness, Problems connected
with tJie drinking of wine and,
87i a i-876 a 28.

Drunkenness, 87i a I, 876 a 28 ;
effect on the vision, 872 a i8ff,
b 3ff, 874 a 5ff., b 9ff.; more
seriously affects those who take
physical exercise, 873 a 13 ; ill
effects prevented by taking
cabbage, a 37 ff. ; effect on the
speech, 875 b i9ff. ; oil beneficial
against, 876 a 26.

Dumb, the, speak through their
nostrils, 899 a 6, 17.

Dumbness, 895 a i6, 898 b 32 ; often
found with deafness, 96 i b 14.

Dwarfs, 892 a 6.

Dysentery, 86o a 32, 86i b 4.

Ear-drums, inflated by yawning,
96o a 38 ; of divers, burst in the
sea, b 8 ff. ; protected by sponges,
b 15 ff. ; oil poured into, 96i a 24.

Ears, Problems connected with the,
96o b 36-96i b 6.

Ears, turn red from shame, 957 b 10,
96o a 36ff, 96i a 8, b 3i; slitting
of, by divers, 96o b 2lff. ; scrap
ing the e.s causes coughing, b 35 ;
holes close up more quickly in
left e., b 40 ff. ; male and
female e.s, 96i a 2 ; buzzing in,
a 16 ; oil placed in e.s, to drive
out water, a i8ff. ; closely con
nected with the lungs, b !3ff. ;
see also Hearing.

East wind (Apeliotes), 940*32,
943 b 33 j begins in early morn
ing, 944 a 20 ; origin of its name,
944 a 24; (Hellespontias), 946 b
33, 947 a 2.

INDEX

Echo, 899*24, b 3o, 9<Di b i7, 904*
38, b 28 ; higher than original
sound, 9i8 a 35.

Eclipse of the sun, 9i2 b n, 942*22.

Edible plants, 923 a 25 ff.

Eggs, as a cure for weals, 889 b n ;
raw, will not spin round, 88$ b 37 ;
double-yolked, 898* 17 ; of croco
diles, 926*9.

Egypt, cultivation of melons in,
926 b 5 ; S. wind does not blow in
the maritime regions of, 945 a 21 ff.

Egyptians, bandy-legged, 909* 27.

Elaterium, 864* 5.

Elements, when pure show no
variation, 960* 31.

Elysian Plains, 943 b 22.

Emetics, 859* 25.

Empedocles, on the pigmentation
of the eye, 910*15; quoted,
929 b 1 6 ; on petrifaction, 937* 15 ;
afflicted by melancholy, 953* 27.

Enslavement, accusation of, 95 i b 2.

Enthymemes, 9i6 b 26, 29.

Epilepsy, 896 b 6, 953*16, 954 b 30 ;
occurs only in man, 960* 1 8.

Epitrite , 920*36.

Equinox, 942 b 25, 30, 36, 943* 2.

Ethiopians, have white teeth, but
dark nails, 898 b i2; bandy
legged, 909* 27.

Eunuchs, 879 b 8 ; vision of, 876 b
25 ; swollen legs of, b 31 ; physical
peculiarities of, 894 b 19, 36, 895*
35 ; do not suffer from varicocele,
894 b 39 ; have sore legs, 895* 31 ;
do not become bald, 897 b 23 ;
have shrill voices, 9Oo b i5, 903*
27, 906*3.

Euripides, quoted (lost play), 895*
14, (Crespho?ites] 95 7 b 11.

Eurus, see SoutJi-East wind.

Evil eye, 926 b 20 ff.

Examples , 9i6 b 25.

Excess, a cause of disease, 859*2,
862 b 10.

Exercise, physical, effect on health,
865* i ; increase of, healthy, 884*
22; distends the body, 885 b 23;
the voice shrill after violent e.,
901*30; detrimental to the vision,
958 b 28.

Eyebrows, grow thicker with ad
vancing years, 878 b 28.

Eyelashes, falling off of, 878 b 22.

Eyes, Problems connected ivith the,
957*36-960*33.

Eyes, the, position of during sexual
intercourse, at death, and in
sleep, 876*31 ff. ; effect of sexual
intercourse upon, *36ff, 88o b
8 ff. ; anointed by childless
women, 876 b 12 ; watering of e.s
of riders on horseback, 882* 3,
884 b 22 ; scars on e.s are white,
889 b 21 ; coloration of, 892* I ff. ;
human, why near together, 8g2 b
4 ff. ; effect of climate on colour
of, 9io*i3ff. ; effect of various
plants upon, 925*27^". ; two e.s
better than one, 957 b 5 ; become
red from anger, 957 b 9, 961*9;
do not feel cold, 959 b 15 ; sneez
ing stopped by rubbing, 957* 38,
96i b i4, 962 a 25ff. ; the two e.s
connected at their source, 957 b
19, 40; sometimes benefited by
ophthalmia, 858*4; sight of two
e.s equally acute, 959* 20 ; various
movements of, 957 b 35 ff. ; causes
of distortion of, 958* 6 ff, 960* 9,
13 ; effects of distortion of, 95 8 b
12; the e. is a fire, 959 b 18, 960*
33 ; left e. more easily closed than
right, 959 b 3i ; see also Vision.

Face, Problems connected with the,
965^-17.

Face, the, perspires most freely,
867* 23 ff, b 34 ff., 9 65 b 4 ff ; why
chosen for representation in por
traits, b 2 f . ; eruptions on, b 14.

Fasting, makes sexual intercourse
easier, 877 b 4ff. ; odour resulting
from, 9o8 b II.

Fat, consumed by exertion, 88o b 34,
37; not natural, 882*22; dis
tribution of, on the body, 891* 19.

Fatigue, Problems connected with,
88o b i5-885 b ii.

Fatigue, cures for, 863 b 19 ff, 881*
4, 12; more f. caused to the arm
from casting if the hand is empty,
*39ff. ; more f. caused by lying
on a flat than on a concave sur
face, b 28 ff. ; caused by short
walks, b 37 ff, 884 b 8 ff. ; persons
of equable temperament liable to
f., but easily throw it off, 883 b
1 1 ff. ; felt less by the legs than
by the thighs, b 14 ff. ; cured by
baths in summer, by anointing
in winter, 884 b 36 ff.

Bb

INDEX

Fatness, a condition of health, 888 a
30.

Fear and Courage, Problems con
nected with, 947 b io-949 a 20.

Fear, causes chill, 889 a 24, 903* 12,
94S b 13 ; a process of cooling,
89S a 6; causes trembling, 947 b
12, 948 a 35, b 6; effect on the
bowels, 869 a 3, 948 b i4, 19, 29,
35 ff. ; effect on the heart, 947 b
29 ; causes thirst, b 20, 948 a I, 7,
b 13 ff. ; makes men silent, b 20 ff. ;
causes urine to pass, b 36 ff.

Feet, the, swelling of, from bilious
ness and starvation, 859 b 2 ff. ;
of the nervous, perspire, 868 b 34,
869 b 4ff. ; bareness of, prejudicial
to sexual intercourse, 87 7 a 5 ff. ;
effect of cold upon, 887 b 29 ;
reason for an even number in
animals, 893 b 20 ff, 894 a 17 ff.

Females, smaller than males, So.l b
21 ; shorter-lived, 896 a 35 ; f. in
fants more likely to be born in
damp districts, 9O9 a 32 ; naturally
inferior to males, 95i a i2; have
fewer teeth, 963 b 20 ; male and
f. ear, 961* 2.

Fennel-stalks, 9O5 b 7, 19, 923 b 25 ;
effect of blows from, 8S9 b 27, 32,
8 9 o a 37.

Fever, 859 b 6, 7, 10, 23, 86i b 33ff.,
862 a 18 ff, b 25, 32, 873 b 17, 874 b
18, 8 7 5 a 13, 887 a 24, 94^ 25;
treatment of, 866 a 8 ff. ; caused by
dry S. winds, 946 a 4 ; the tongue
as an indication of, 963 b 34; burn
ing f.s more common in cold
weather, 862 b 32 ff. ; quartan f.,
86i h 5, 866 a 31.

Fifth (musical), 92o a l5; how
obtained in wind instruments,
9i9 b 7ff. ; singing in f.s, 9i8 b
34 ff. ; double f. not concordant,
92o a 24, 92i b I ; ratio of, 92o a 32,

9 2I b 3.

Fig-tree, grafting on, 924 b 36 ff.

Figs, 93o b 20, 32 ff., 39 ff.

Fire, a greater f. overpowers a less,
86o b i8, 86i a 32, 874 b 5, 876 a 2,
88o a 2i, 93o b 3o, 93i a 19, 937 a 26,
96i b 3i, 962 a 28; stimulates the
passing of urine, 886 a 36 ; does
not become corrupt, 939 b 27 ; the
eye consists of f., 959 b i8, 96o a
.33-

Fishermen, have red hair, 966 b 25.

Fishes, sexual intercourse of, 878 a
39 ; some f. have no bladder,
^8 9 5 b i.

Flesh, Problems concerning the
coloration of the, 966 b 2o-9O7 b 27.

Flesh, the, should be rare rather
than dense, 865 b ioff., 884 a 26 ff.,
966 a 13 ff. ; effect of friction on,
882 a i3, 965 b 36ff., 966 b I ff.,
10 ff. ; nature of human f., 893 b
29 ff. ; more sensitive to heat
than to cold, 963 b 26 ; effect of
running on, 966 b 10 ff. ; darkened
by the sun, b 2iff., 967 b 23fT. ;
cause of pallor in, 966 b 34ff.,
967 a 9, 13; cause of ruddiness in,
966 b 36ff, 967 a 8ff., 12 ff. ; be
comes blacker in old age, 967 b
13 ff.

Flood, the, 9io a 35.

Flour, wheaten, 927 a 23, b 15, 35,
9 28 a 6, 16, 35, 929 b 8/35, 9 3 o a 3 ;
whitened by oil, 927 a 1 1 ff.

Flowers, odour of, 9o6 a 3i, b 23, 35,
907 a 2o, 29, b i, 9o8 b 37, Q09 b 3,
95o a 16.

Flute, 9oo a 3i, 9i8 a 23, 3i,9i9 b 4;
used both by those who grieve
and those who rejoice, 9i7 b i9;
a more pleasant accompaniment
to song than the lyre, 922- I ;
covers up the mistakes of the
singer, a 15.

Fomentations, 866 a 25.

Food, not taken immediately after
exercise, 883 b 33 ; effect of sweet
f., 93o a 14, 24 ; see also Diet.

Forerunners, the (winds), 939 b II,
94i b 7, 946*16.

Fourth (musical), 92o a 15 ; how
obtained in wind instruments,
9i9 b iiff. ; double f. not con
cordant, 92O a 24, 92 i b I ; ratio of,

Friction, effect on the flesh, 882 a
13, 965 b 36ff., 966 b iff., b ioff. ;
more difficult to apply to the left
than the right leg, 884* 1 6.

Frogs, 862 a u.

Fruit, Problems connected with,
93Q a 5-93i a 32.

Fruit, as an article of diet, 93o a 7 ;
methods of preserving, b I, 93 i a
23 ; dried, 93O b 12 ; how to enjoy,

b 20.

Furniture, spontaneous noise made
by, 902 a 36 ff.

INDEX

Gall-stones, man alone suffers from,

S95 a 37fT-
Garlic, 865 a 22, QO3 b 29, 9o; b 7,

9o8 a 28, b 4, 925 b 10, 926*3, u,

1 6, 26, 949 a 6.
Geometrical truths, contemplation

of, gives no pleasure, 956 a 15 ff.
G cry one (play by Nicomachus),

922 b 13.
Gestation, period of, 89i b II, 25,

896 a 14, S9S b 10 ; varies in man,

S95 a 24.

Glass, 905 b ;, 18, 939* 14.
Gnomon, 9i2 a 4o, b 7.
Goats, milk of, 891** 4; change of

colour in, 89i b i3; prolific, 898 a

12.
Gourds, grow well if buried, cj23 b

i6ff. ; keep fresh in wells, 924 a

36 ff. ; methods of producing

early, 924 b loff.
Grafting, 924 b 36 ff.
Grapes, 9O9 a 2i; dried sweeter

than fresh, 925 b i5; stones of,

b 2 4 .

Grass, 923*31.

Green objects, beneficial to the
sight, 959 a 24ff.

Growth, in different dimensions,
9i6 a i2ff.

Gruel, 929 b I ; see also Barley-
gruel.

Gums, inflammation of the, 863 b 1 1,
8S7 b i.

Hail, 94o a 13.

Hair, growth of, at puberty, 876 b
33 ff. ; men with thick h. are
lustful, 88o a 34 ff, 893 b 10 ff. ;
cause of bristling of, 886 b 24,
88S a 39, b i6ff, 889 a 26ff, 96s a
8 ff. ; does not grow on human
scars, 89o b 38, 893 b 28, 894 * 13 ff;
turns grey through leprosy, 89 i b
i, 894 b 6 ; grows harder if plucked
out, 893 a i8; soft in northern,
hard in southern people, a 3i;
softer when long, a 36 ; grows on
scars upon animals, b 27, 894-
I2ff. ; distribution of, in man
and animals, 896 b 29 ff, 898 a
20 ff; turns white in man only,
a 31 ff ; curliness of, 909- 30, 963
I iff.; reddish, of those who
work on the sea, 966 b 25ff, of
those who live in the north, b 33.

Halo, solar, 9i2 b 34.

Hare, prolific, 892 b I.

Head, the, sores on, 86i a 33, 909*
35 ; effect of running on, 88 i b 7 ;
movement of, by animals, 892 b
19; some animals live after their
h.s have been cut off, 893 b 2i;
the most divine part of man, 962 a

23, 35-

Health, a state of rest, 886 b 6 ; fat
ness a condition of h., 888 a 3o;
not communicable to others, 95 i a
4ff.

Hearing, often defective from birth,
898 b 28 ; has the same source as
the voice, b 2Q.; better in those
who hold their breath, 9O3 b 34,
9O4 b u ; prevented by yawning,
902 b 9 ff, 904 a 16 ff. ; see also
Ears.

Heart, the, not controlled by the
mind, 882 a 35; effect of fear
upon, 947 b 29.

Heat, lack of, causes old age, 875 a
13 ; feeds on moisture, a 14 ; the
cause of motion in animals, a 25 ;
excessive h. causes brutishness,

99 a J 3-
Heavenly bodies, nine in number,

9io b 35 ; appear always to retain

the same shapes, 91 i a 5 ff.
Hellebore, 864 a 4.
Hellespont, 946 b 34, 38.
Hellespontias (Kast Wind), 946 b

33, 947 a 2.

Hemlock, effects of, 874 b 2.
Heracles, affected by melancholy,

953 a i4-

Heraclitus, 908*30, 934 b 34-
Herbs, 923 a 32.
Hesiocl, quoted ( Works and Days,

582, 586), 879 a 28, (ib. 40) 892 il 29.
Hesitation in speech ; see Speech.
Hiccups, cause of, 963 a 39; stopped

by sneezing, 96i b 9 ff, 96"3 a 38 ff. ;

stopped by vinegar, 96i b 20,

962 a i, 963 b 6 ; other preventives,

962 a i ff., b 3i ff.
Hoar-frost, 888 b 30, 938 a 34, 939

36, 94o b 8.
Homer, quoted (//. v. 75), 8o.o b 9 ;

(Od, xx. 71) 894 b 34 ; (// vii. 64)

934 a i4; (Od. iv. 567) 943 b 235

(//. vi. 200-2) 953 a 23 ; (Od. xix.

122) b 12.
Homophony , less pleasant than

antiphony , 92 i a 7 ff. ; produces

only a simple sound, a 12.

b 2

INDEX

Honey, 89o b 25; mixed with flour,
9 2S a 5.

Hoofs of animals, gelatinous matter
in, 935 b 38.

Horned animals, less hairy, 898 a 24.

Horse-back, riders on, water at the
eyes, 882^3, 884 b 22.

Horse-parsley, 923 a 34, b 8.

Horses, 893 b 27, 894* 12, 896 b 10,
S97 b 35> 898*11, 33, b 6; period
of gestation in, 89i b 28; colour
of eyes of, 892 a i ; wild, 895 b 25.

Hunger, not felt immediately after
exercise, 884 a I ; stimulated by
recollection, 886 a 33; ravenous,
in cold weather, 88; b 38 ff. ; more
tolerable than thirst, 949 b 26, 32.

Hypate, 9i8 a i4, 17, 9i9 b 9, 12,
92i a io, 21, 24, 922 b 4; easy to
sing, 9i7 b 35 ; stopped down pro
duces nete, 91 8 b I ; is double nete
(in length of string), 9iQ b i ; is
half nete (in frequency of pitch),
92o a 30 ; effect of h. produced by
stopping down nete, gi9 b 15,
921^14; one of the extremities
of the scale, 922 a 27.

Hypodorian mode, unsuited for
tragic chorus, 92O a 8, 922^ 10 ff. ;
characteristics of, b 15 ff.
Hypophrygian mode, unsuited for
tragic chorus, 92o a 8, o.22 b loff. ;
has a character of action, b 13.

Imitation, in music, 9iS b 17 ; by
actors, b 28 ; of parents by young,
894 a 3<>.

Inanimate Things, Problems con
nected with) 9i3 a 19-915^ 35.

Incontinence, only used of the
pleasures of touch and taste,
949 b 6ff., 37 ff.

India, wild dogs in, 895^ 25.

Infertility, of drunkards, 87 i a 23 ff. ;
caused by varicocele, 878 b 36ff.

Inflammation, cured by salt and
vinegar, 889* 19.

Injustice, varying degrees of, 952 a
22 ff. ; in respect of money, a 20,

b 2 3 .

Instruments, wind, 9i9 b 3 ; impor
tance of mese in tuning, 9i9 a
I4ff., 92o b 7ff. ; see also Flute,
Lyre.

Intelligence and Wisdom, Problems
connected with Prudence, 95 3 a

Intelligence, use of the, 955 b 26ff.
Interval, musical, 917^2, 36; see
also Fifth, Fourth, Octave.

Jars, buried, cause resonance, 899^
25 ff. ; two, one full and the other
half full, give an accord in the
octave, 922 b 35 ff; capacity of,
938 b i4ff.

Journeys, unfamiliar, seem longer,
88 3 b 3ff., ?55 b 9 ff.

Jumpers, weights held by, 88l b 4.

Justice and Injustice, Problems
connected with, 95o a 2i~953 a 7.

Justice, association with, makes
men just, 95 i a 5 ff.

Kidneys, 876 b 20.

Knees, strain on, in ascending,
882 b 25 ff.

Lacedaemonian, 953 a 19.
Lame, the, are lustful, 88o b 5.
Lameness, more common in man

than in the animals, 895 a 2off.
Language, 898 b 30, 35.
Larynx, 901 a 2, b ii, 903*^34, b 29,

9o6 a I.
Laughter, a deep sound, 900*21,

b 7 ; more difficult to restrain

among friends, 95o a 17 ff. ; nature

of, 965 a 14 ff. ; caused by tickling,

965 a 23 ff.

Laws, originally sung, 9i9 b 38.
Lead, 88g A 13.
Leeks, make the voice loud, 9O3 b

27 ; cannot endure salt water,

9 23 a 7.
Left side of the body, more com

fortable to lie upon, 8S6 a i5ff. ;

moister and hotter than the right,

961*3 ff. ; inferior to right except

in the senses, 958 b 16, 23, 959*

20, 96o a 29.
Legs, sores on, 86i a 34, 895*31,

9O9 a 36 ; of eunuchs, swollen,

S76 b 31 ; feel fatigue less than the

thighs, 883 b 13 ff.
Lentil-soup, 936 b 24.
Leopards, never tame, 8 9 5 b 26.
Leprosy, 887 a 34 ; white 1., 891*

26 ; found only in man, 8 9 4 a 37 ;

turns hair grey, 89 i b i, 894 b 6.
Lesbos, 946 b 34, 947 a 4.
Letters, use of, in speech, 895* 8,

INDEX

Libya, 9o6 b 19, 933 b 33 ; sheep in,
896*26; winds in, 942 a 8, 14,

945 b 35-

Lice, 86i a ioff., 924* 9.
Lichanos, 9i9 a 17.
Life, human 1. is a circle , 9i6 a

28 ff.
Light, cannot penetrate through

dense objects, 9O4 b i5ff., 939*

loff. ; travels farther and quicker

than sound, 904** 16 fF.
Lily, 926 a 2.

Line of life , 896* 37 ff., 964 a 33 ff.
Lion, 95o a 12 ; not prolific, 892 b 2 ;

never tame, 895** 26.
Lip, trembling of lower, 948 a 36,

b i, 7 ; sensitive to tickling, 965 a

i8ff.

Lips, see South- West wind.
Lisping, 902 b 23 ff., 9O3 b 23 ff.
Literary Study, Problems connected

with, 9i6 b 2-9i7 b 16.
Loan, robbery of a, less serious

than of a deposit, 9$o a 28 ff,

b 28ff

Loaves, whiter when cold, 927 a
27 ff. ; heavier without salt,
a 35ff. ; do not cohere when cold,
b 7 ff. ; twice-baked, do not be
come hard, 928 a 1 1 ff. ; see also
Bread.

Locality, Problems connected with
t/ie effect of, on Temperament,
909 a i3-9io b 9.

Longevity, causes of, 909** i, 25, 34 ;
indicated by the line of life ,
8c,6 a 37ff, 964 a 33ff.

Lye, 863 b i7, 88; b 7, 966 b 28.

Lying, in a curved position, recom
mended by physicians, 88 5 b 27 ff;
on right side induces sleep, 886 a

3 ff -

Lymph, 89i a 18.

Lyre, 9i8 a 23, 31, 922 b i6; less
pleasing than flute as accom
paniment to solo, 922 a i ff. ;
Phoenician, 9i8 b 8.

Lyrical character of early tragedies,
920* 12.

Lysander, a victim of melancholy,
953 a i 9 .

Macedonia, 954 b 32.

Madness, due to black bile, 86o b

23-
* Magadizing , 9i9 a i, 92i a 13, 29.

Magnesia, sheep in, 896* 26 ; hot
waters in, 937 b 7, n.

Males, larger than females, 89i b
21 ; longer-lived, 896 a 35; deeper-
voiced, 9oi b 28; naturally sup
erior, 95 1 a 12 ; have more teeth,
963 b 20 ; m. and female ears,
96i a 2.

Man, sneezes more than other
animals, 897 a I ff., 962 b S ff. ; the
most unjust of the animals, 95O b
32 ; has most wisdom of the
animals, 955 b 4 ; reasons for his
superiority, 956 a ii; incon
sistency of his thought and
action, 956 b 33 ; alone liable to
gall-stones, 895 a 57 ff., to distor
tion of vision, 960* 9, 10, to
epilepsy, a 18.

Maracus, the Syracusan, 954 a 38.

Marine animals, well nourished,
897 b 14-

Marjoram, 924*37, 958 b 8; put in
wine, 926 b 32.

Market-place, theft from the, 952*
1 8.

Marshes, effect of living among,
99 a 35> b2 > 37, 9io a 2; subter
ranean roarings in, 937 b 38 ff.

Masks, tragic, 958* 17.

Mathematical Theory, Problems
connected with, 9io b n-9i3 a 16.

Mead, 872 b 26, 974 b u.

Meat, ways of preserving, 93o b i.

Medicine, Problems connected with,
859* i-866 b 6.

Medicine, not administered just
after exercise, 883 b 33 ; see also
Drugs.

Melancholic (atrabilious), effect of
wine upon the, 873 a 32 ; the m.
suffer from sleeplessness, 874
1 8 ; m. diseases, 878 b 38 ; the m.
particularly inclined to sexual
intercourse, 880*30; those who
hesitate in their speech are m.,
9O3 b i9; m. humours, 9i6 b 6,
9i7 a 22; the m. temperament,
possessed by many eminent
men, 95 3 a 10 ff, characteristics
of, b 23 ff. ; the m. start in their
sleep, 957 a 33-

Melitaean dogs, 892 a 2i.

Melons, cultivation of, 926 b 4 ff.

Memphis, 945*22.

Menstruation, 891*31, 35, 895*34,
896 a 29.

INDEX

Mese, 918*38, 39, o,i9 a n, o, 2 2 b 6;
importance of m. in tuning instru
ments, 9i9 a 14 ff., 92o b 7 ff. ;
occurs most frequently of all
notes, 9 1 9 a 19, 26; why so called,
b 20, 922 a 2i ; the highest note in
the tetrachord, 92O a 2i; ratio of
nete to m., a 3i.

Messina, Straits of, 932 a 5.

Milk, 89i b 4, 929 a 3i.

Millstone, 964^7.

Mint, cooling effect of, 923 a 10.

Mirror, Q,i5 b 3o.

Mixolydian mode, Q22 b 22.

Modes of music, 9i8 b 22 ; Hypo-
dorian, 920 a 8, 922 b 10 ff. ; Hypo-
phrygian, 92o a 8, 922 b 10 ff. ;
Mixolydian, 922 b 22 ; Phrygian,

b 2I.

Moisture, naturally carried down
wards, 9O4 b 27.

Money, injustice in respect of,
95o2 4 ff, b 2 3 ff.

Monstrosities, 878 a 20, 898 a 9 ; their
cause, a I4ff.

Moon, appearance of, at eighth
clay, 91 i b 28 ff. ; appearance when
half full, b 35ff ; reason of flat
appearance of, 9i2 a 28ff. ; casts
longer shadows than the sun,

9 I2 b 4 ff.

Moral character, in music, and its
nature, 9i9 b 26 ff, 92o a 2 ff,
b 32ff.

Motion, movement, in animals,
caused by heat, 875*25 ; usually
produces heat but sometimes has
a cooling effect, 884 b 12 ; disease
a state of m., 886 b 5 ; of head in
animals, 892 b 19 ; the sun a
cause of m., 899^ 21.

Month and the parts therein,
Problems concerning the, 963 b
i6~964 b 19.

Murder, of woman worse than of
man, 95i a nff. ; accusation of,

b 2.

Music, Problems connected with,

9i7 b i9-923 a 3-

Music, familiar m. more pleasing,
9i8 a 3ff, 920 a 32; moral char
acter of, 9i9 b 26 ff, 920* 2 ff,
b 32ff ; reason of pleasure caused
by, b 29.

Musicians, 9i6 b 35 ; their aim is to
give pleasure, b 37.

Myrrh, 9o6 a 25.

Myrtle, berries, 925 b 13, 23, 93i b 7 ;
branches, methods of preserving,
926*33; trees, 927*3.

Narcissus, 925 a 19.

Narratives, concentrated n.s give

more pleasure than diffuse, 9i7 b

8ff

Nasturtium, 925 a 30.
Navel, size of, in man and the

animals, 896 a 12 ff.
Necks, some animals are without,

892 b 20.

Neocles, 956 a 12.

Nervous, the, their feet but not
their faces perspire, 868 b 34 ff ,
869 b 4 ff. j their voice trembles,
9<D2 b 30, 9o6 a 13; their voice is
deep, 902 b 36, 9C>5 a 5 ; their heat
travels upwards, 9O3 a i.

Nervousness, increases hesitancy
of speech, 9O3 b 7 ; makes the
voice shrill, b 1 1 ; a kind of
shame, 905 a 8 ; in singers, 9o6 a
I?-

Nete, 917*31, 9i8 a 14, b I, 9*9*9,
13, 92o a i7, 92i a io, 23, 922 b 4;
is \\3\ihypate (in length of string),
9i9 b i; is double hypate (in
frequency of pitch), 92o a 30 ;
when n. is stopped down, hypate
seems to sound, 9i9 b 15, 92i b
14 ; ratio of n. to mese, 92G a 31 ;
the most violent note, 92i b 35 ;
one of the extremities of the
scale, 922 a 27.

Nomes , 9i8 b i3; why so called,
9i9 b 38.

North, dwellers in the, have fine,
red hair, 966 b 33.

North-East wind (Caecias), attracts
the clouds to itself, 94o a i8ff,
943 a 32 ff.

North wind, brings cold, 939 b i8,
945 b 2 ; dispels cloud, 939 b 20 ;
occurs at fixed times, 94o a 35,
94 1 b 38 ; ceases to blow at night
on the third day, 941*21, b 34;
frequency of, 94 i a 27, _ 944*36 ;
cannot change to the wind on its
right, 94i b 12 ; is strong when it
begins, weak as it ceases, 944 b
30, 945 a 8, 27; causes hunger,
945 a l8; follows quickly upon
south wind, b 5 ; keen during the
day, but falls at night, 947 a 28 ;
effects of, in winter, b 4 ff.

INDEX

Nose, Problems connected with the,
96i b 9~963 b 1 6.

Nose, the, bleeding at, 89i a 13,
962* 17 ; the deaf speak through,
$99 a 4, J 5> 9 62b 35 ff -; closely
connected with the lungs, 96 i b
17 ; cartilage of, 963 b 14.

Note, scale of seven n.s, 9i8 a i3,
9i9 b 22, 92o a 16, 922 a 22; scale
of eight n.s, 919^ 21, 922*21;
n.s compared with angles, 91 8 a
20 ; low n.s more conspicuous if
out of tune, 9i9 a 29 ; easier to pass
from a high to a low than from a
low to a high n., 920* 19 ff. ; a
low n. nobler than a high, a 23 ;
sound shrillest in the middle of
a n., a 38 ; a high n. requires
more effort, b i6; lower of two
n.s in a chord more suited to
melody, 922* 28.

Numbness, cause of, 886 a 10.

Nuts, 93o b 15.

Octave, 9iS a i7, b 3, 919*3, 13,
92i a i2, 14, 29, 31; accord in
the o. gives the effect of unison,
9i8 b 7; alone used in singing,
9i8 b 40 ; the most beautiful of all
accords, 92o a 27 ; in anliphony ,
92i :l 8; produced by two jars, one
full and the other half full, 922 b
35 ff. ; or by two wine-skins, one
double the size of the other, 923 a
2 ff. ; double o., how obtained in
wind instruments, 9i9 b 5 ; is con
cordant, 920 a 25 ; the ratio of the
o., 92i b 7.

Odour, Problems connected with
tilings of pleasant, 9o6 a 23-9O7 b
19 ; Problems connected ivitJi
things of unpleasant, 9O7 b 20-
9C>9 a 10.

Odour, of persons after puberty,
877 b 2iff., 879 a 22; of flowers,
9o6 a 3i, b 23, 35, 907 a 2o, 29, b i,

33, 98 b 37> 99 b 3, 95 a l6 5 of
trees, affected by the rainbow,
9o6 a 36 ff. ; of things in motion is
stronger, 9o/ a 5,9o8 b 8 ; of urine,
907 b 21, 9o8 a 28 ; of animals, un
pleasant, except the panther, 9O7 b
35; of perspiration, 9o8 a 2, b 27,
99 a 5> 9 2 6 b 17 ; of the breath of
the deformed, 9o8 b 29 ; o.s are
less perceptible in winter, 9O7 a 8 ;
are smoke or vapour, 907=* 29 ;

unpleasant o.s not perceived in
eating, b 27 ; rendered more un
pleasant by heat, 9o8 a 20 ; see
also Perfumes.

Oeta, Mt.,~ 953 a 18.

Offspring, resemblance of, to
parents, 89i b 32.

Oil, olive oil, 863 b 22, 865 a 11, 925 b
3, 927 a i2, 28, 929 a i2, 932 b 23,
9 3 6 a 12, 959 b 12, 966 b 35, 967 a 3 ;
beneficial against drunkenness,
876 a 26; mixed with water stops
fatigue, 88i a 4; contains heat,
884 b 39; use ^ to expel water
from the ears, 96 i a 18 ff. ; poured
into the ears of divers, a 24 ff. ;
bleached by the sun, 966 b 2iff,
967 b 23 ff.

Old age, due to lack of heat, 875 a
13 ; long sight in, 959 b 39 ; flesh
becomes blacker in, 967 b 13 ff.

Olympic victory, 956 a 19.

Onions, 924*31, 925 a i9, 27, 926 a

II, 16, 32,95^7.

Ophthalmia, 859 b 23ff, 86o a 2i;
dry o., 860*30; why contagious,
887 a 22ff. ; sometimes beneficial
to the eyes, 958 b 4.

Optics, treatises on, 9i3 a 27, 959 b 2.

Orator, 9i6 b 35, 9i7 a io; aim of
the, 9i7 a I ; inferior to the philo
sopher, 9i7 a 3, 956 b 6 ; deals with
the particular, 9i7 a 4, 956 b 8.

Orchard-watcher, 938 a 16.

Orchestra of a theatre, 901 30.

Orchomenus, 926 b 5.

Organisms engendered in the body
by corruption, 924 a 8.

Orion, 859 a 23 ; causes changeable
weather, 941^24.

Orpiment, 966 b 28.

Orthian Songs , 92o b 20.

Oxen, do not cough, 89i a 9 ; do not
change their coats, 898 a 33-

Oxymel, 922 a 6.

Paesus, Lake of, peculiar properties
of its waters, 935 b 34-

Pain, caused by a fire to the chilled,
888 b 39.

Painters, primitive, 895 b 37 ; repre
sent rivers pale yellow, the sea
blue, 932 a 31.

Pan-pipes, 9i9 b 8.

Panther, pleasant odour of, 9O7 b 35.

Paramese, 92 2 b 6.

Paranete, 9i7 b 39, 9i8 a 38.

INDEX

Parhelion, 912^7.
Parhypate, the voice breaks most
on, 9i7 b 3O; difficult to sing,

b 35-

Parmenon, the actor, 948 a 3.

Particles, connecting, 9i9 a 22.

Partridges, 9O3 b 28.

Pea-soup, 936 b 24.

Penalties, tor theft, 932 a i;, 953 a 3;
for assault, 953 a 4.

Pennyroyal, 925*19.

Pentathlon, 88i b 4.

Pepper, as a drug, 864 b 12, 17.

Per accident \ per se, 898 b 37,
9 o6 b 5.

Perfumes, burnt, less perceptible
near at hand, 9o6 a 23, 30, b 35,
9O7 a 24 ; burnt on ashes, more
pungent, 9O7 a 13, 35 ; made from
flowers, 909 a 3.

Perspiration, Problems connected
with, S66 b 9-87o b 38.

Perspiration, when caused, 866 b
7 ff. ; why not caused under water,
b 15 ff. ; why salty, b 19 ff. ; why
freer en the upper part of the
body, b 28 ff. ; why produced
freely by exercising the arms
only, b 33 ft". ; why less odorous
from head than from body, 867 a

4 ff. ; why more copious after a
rest, a 8 ff., 868 a 15 ff. ; why freer
on the clothed than the naked,
867 a 1 8 ff. ; why freest on the face,
*2 3 ff., *34ff. f 965 b 3. ff-J why
most copious if heat is applied
gently, 867 a 28 ff. ; why more
copious if a scraper is used, b 4 ff. ;
effect of rue upon odour of, b 8 ff. ;
why freer on back than front,
b i2if. ; why freer during sleep,
b 3iff., 869 a i3ff. ; what is the
cause of vomiting after p., 868 a

5 ff. ; why freest on head and feet,
a 10 ff. ; why freer after than
during exertion, 868 a 1 5 ff., b 12 ff. ;
why more necessary in summer
than in winter, a 26 ff., 869 b 32 ;
why does p. lighten the body,
868 a 35ff., 965 b 2off. ; why less
free if one eats as well as drinks,
868 b 29 ff. ; why do the nervous
perspire on the feet and not on
the face, b 34ff., 869 b 4ff. ; how
can the face be red without per
spiring, 869 a 8 ff. ; in vapour
baths, a i9, b 2o; why healthier

to perspire naked than clothed,
a 24 ff. ; hot p. healthier than cold,
870* 15 ff., 959 b 25 ; less free in
front of a large fire, 870*21 ff. ;
freer in the clothed, a 26 ff. ; freer
in those walking up hill, a 32 ff. ;
freer in summer, b 6 ff. ; spon
taneous inferior to artificial,
b 14 ff. ; less free in winter, b 27 ff. ;
odour of, 9o8 a 2, b 27, 909* 5,
o,26 b i7.

Philosopher, superior to orator,
9 I 7 a 3? 956 b 6; deals with the
general rather than the particular,

9.i 7 a 4, 5> 956 b 7-

Philoxenus, 950*3.

Phlegm, 86o a 25, 30, b 3, 10, 88o a
24, 891*12, 9<Di a 2, 9o6 a 2, 9o8 b
15 ; diseases due to, 878 b 14.

Phoenician lyre, 9i8 b 8.

Phrygian mode, 922^21.

Phrynichus, 920*11.

Phthisis, 86o b i ; emission of semen
during sleep by sufferers from,
884*6; why contagious, 887 a 22.

Physical Problems, Summary of,

Physics, the, of Empedocles, 929 a
1 6.

Pigs, prolific, 892 b i, 898 a 12 ; does
not shed its coat, 893* 4 ; bad-
tempered after bearing young,
894 b i3; compared with wild
boar, 896* 23.

Plague, why contagious, 8$9 b 15 ff.

Plaintiff, advantages of, in a suit,
951*27.

Plane-tree, 9i2 b 12.

Plants, wild X cultivated, 896* 6 ff ,
924 a i8; stones dislodged by,
902 b 2 ; contain no excretion,
908* 10 ; roundness of stems in,
915* 29 ff. ; growth of, 916* 12 ff. ;
cooking of, 923 a 17, 21; edible
and inedible, a 25 ff. ; annual and
biennial, a 33 ; time to water p.s,
924 b i5ff. ; effect of watering,

926 a 2I ff.

Plaster, fresh p. gives resonance,

899 b 1 8.
Plato, a victim of melancholy, 953*

27 ; his answer to Neocles, 956*

12.

Pleiads, 859*23, 86i a 20.
Pleurisy, drunkards liable to, 871*

3, b 33-
Poet, 954 a 39.

INDEX

Poetry, 953** n.
Pomegranate, 923 a 14, b 25.
Pontus, corn in, 9O9 a 19 ; extreme
variations of temperature in, 938*

Porridge, 863 b 6.
Portents, 9<D2 a 8.
Positions assiimed in lying down

and in other postures, 885 b 12-

886 a 2i.

* Posterior , meaning of, 9i6 a 18 ff.
Poultices, 863 a 6, 864 b 32.
Poverty, more common among the

good than among the bad, 95o b

9ff.

Prior , meaning of, 9i6 a 18 ff.
Professions, honourable X mean,

9i7 a 6ff.
Property, law-suits regarding, 95 i b

9-
Proportions of the human body and

their relation to longevity, 898 a

37 ff.
Proverbs quoted, 938 b 10, 941*21,

94 2 b 2, 943*35, 33, 945 tt , 28,

36, b 3, 947 a 7.
Prudence, Intelligence, and Wis

dom, Problems connected With,

Prudent, the, acquire rather than

spend, 956 b 37.
Pumice-stone, noise of cutting p.

causes shuddering, 886 b n, 939 a

38 ; porosity of, 964 b 38.
Pumpkins, 923 a 14 ; grow well if

buried, b 16 ff. ; keep fresh in

wells, 924 a 36 ff.
Purse-tassels, 926- 6, 19.
Purslane, 863 b ii, 887 b i.
Pycnon , 922 b 7.
Pygmies, 892* 12.
Pythagoreans, 9io b 37.

Quadrupeds, hair of, 896 b 30 ; do
not sneeze, 897 a io; small q.s
produce monstrosities, 8g8 a 9.

Quartan fever, 86i b 5, 866 a 3i.

Radishes, 89o a 25, 9o8 b 3, 923 b 37 ;

cultivation of, 924 a 24 ff.
Rainbow, its effect on trees, 9o6 a

37 ; due to refraction, 9o6 b 7.
Raisin-wine, 926 b 38.
Rams, 963 2 1 ; their hides, 889 b

II ; effect of castration upon,

894 b 23.

Reading, keeps some awake and

sends others to sleep, 9i6 b 2 ff.

9i7 a i8fT.
Recitation with musical accompani

ment, 918* 10.
Recollection, a cause of sympathetic

action, 886 a 33, 887 a 6; gives an

impulse to sexual desire and

hunger, 886 a 34.
Rectilinear figure, 9io b n, 19.
Retraction, of light, 9o6 b 7, 9i2 b 30 ;

of sound, 899 a 25, b 22, 9oi b 19,

22, 90^38, b 3o.
Respiration, rhythmical, of runners,

882 b i ff. ; see also Breathing.
Reticulum , the, 895 b 20.
Revolutions of unevenly weighted

objects, 9 I 3 a 33 ff -, 9 I 5 b 6ff.
Rhetorical displays, 9i6 b 25.
Rheumatism, drunkards liable to

8 7 I b 2 5 .

Right side of body, easier to sleep
on, 886 a 3, 16; the more active,
a 7 ; superior to the left except in
the senses, 958 b i6, 23, 959 a 2o,
96o a 29 ; more easily set in
motion, except the eye, 959 b 3i ;
less moist and hot than. the left,
96i a 3 ff.

Roll (of a book), 9i4 a 25ff.

Roses, scent of, 907*20, 9O9 b 3,
95o a i6; perfume made from,

Roundness, of parts of animals and

plants, 91 5 a 25 ff. ; of extremities,

915^33 ff.
Rue, 867 b 8, 926 b 16 ; grows best if

grafted on a fig-tree, 924 b 35 ff. ;

a remedy against the evil eye,

926 b 20ff.

Runners, use of arms by, 88 i b 4 ff. ;
rhythmical respiration of, 882 b
I ff. ; shock to r.s when stopped
suddenly, 885* 6 ff.

Running, effect on the head, 88 i b
7 ; effect of violent r., 882 a 29 ;
more liability to fall while r. than
walking, b 22; why more difficult
than walking, 883 b 37 ; colder
than standing in the winter, 888 b
21 ; produces less flesh than
friction, 966 b 10 ff.

Salamis, the battle of, 956 a 2O.

Salt, effect of, on the gums, 863 b
II, 887 b i ; a cure for inflamma
tion, 889 b 19 ; crackling of, in the

INDEX

fire, 902 a i ff., 904 a 4, 13 ; makes
bread lighter, 927*35^". ; melts
more freely in salt water than in
fresh, 934 a I fif.

Salt Water and the Sea, Problems
connected with, 93i a 35-936 a 10.

Salt water, drunkards sensitive to,
8;2 a 9 fif., 8;3 b 37 fif. ; suits celery,
923 a 6; warmer than fresh, a 39 fif. ;
dries quicker than fresh, b 25 ff. ;
combustible, 933 a 17 fif., 935 a 5 fif. ;
drinkable when heated, 933 b
12 fif. ; does not flow readily, 933 b
22 fif. ; see also Sea.

Sand, 934 b 12 ; does not form in
lakes, 93 5 a i off.

Satyrus of Clazomenae, &75 a 35.

Saw, sharpening of a, causes
shuddering, 886 b 10.

Scale, of seven notes, 91 8 a 13, 9i9 b
22, 920 a 1 6, 922 a 22; of eight
notes, 9i9 b 21, 922 a 21.

Scammony, as a drug, 864 a 5, b 13,
19.

Scars and Weals, Problems con
nected with Bruises, 889 b 10-
891*5.

Scars, 877 a 2 ; black on body, white
on eye, 889 b 2off., 890^2 fif.,
b 27 ; black on splenetic persons,
890 a 10 fif. ; congenital, a 19 ; hair
does not grow upon human s.s,
b 38f., 893*28, 894 a i3ff. ; but
grows on animal s.s, 893 b 27,
40 ff, 894 a 12 ff.

Scent ; see Odour, Smell.

Science, created by man, 953 b 27;
an instrument of the intelligence,
b 37-

Scraper, athlete s, 867*4.

Sculpture, primitive, 895** 37.

Scurvy, why contagious, 887 a 22,
33-.

Scythia, quick growth of crops in,
925 a 26.

Scythians, fond of wine, 872 a 3.

Sea, Problems connected with Salt
Water and the, 93 l a 35-936* 10.

Sea, calmed by throwing in objects,
93i b io,ff. ; whiter in the BlackS.
than in the Aegean, 932 a 2i ;
more transparent than fresh
water, 932 b 8ff, 935 b i7; more
transparent when the wind is N.
than S., 932 b i6ff. ; contains an
oily substance, b 5, 19; easier to
swim in than fresh water, 933 a

9 ff. ; saltier on the surface, C34 b
23 ff. ; fresher near land, b 37 ff. ;
why salt, 935 a 34 ; why shells and
stones are round in the s., 93 5 a
37 ff. ; white when calm, black
when rough, 936 a 5 ff. ; made
black by N., and blue by S. wind,
944 b 2iff.

Sea-lungs , 89o a 26.

Seasons, effect of, on the body, 859 a
9 if., 86i a 2off, b iff, 21 ff, 862 a
34, b 7ff. 3 n ff, 25 ff.

Sea-weed, 926 a 35, b 2.

Seeds, sweet-smelling, promote the
flow of urine, 9c>7 b 3 ; plants live
to produce seeds, 923 a 30, 35, b 4 ;
more pungent than roots, b 30 ;
older s.s produce more stalk,
924* 27 ff.

Semen, alone produces offspring,
878 a I ff. ; an excretion from the
whole body, b 3, 879 a 5 ; passed
from the brain through the spine,
897 b 25 ; emission of, during
sleep, 876** n, 892 b i5, 963*12,
in illness, 876 a 12, by the dying,
a J 3> 8?7 a 26, owing to fright,
876 a 13, 877 a 25, 949 a 20, by
those who are fatigued and by
the phthisical, 884 a 6.

Sexual Intercourse, Problems con
nected with, 876 a 3o-88o b 12.

Sexual intercourse, beneficial in
diseases caused by phlegm, 865 a
32 ff, 878 b l4ff. ; the drunken
are incapable of, 872* 15 ff. ;
position of eyes during, 876 a
31 ff. ; effect on eyes and flanks,
a 36ff, 88o b 8; effect on vision,
876 b 24 ff. ; bareness of feet
prejudicial to, 877* 5 ff. ; man
languid after, a i6ff, b 32, 879 a
4 ff. ; a turgid state necessary for,
^77 a 35ff ; easier when fasting,
b 44ff. ; the young feel loathing
after, b 10 ff. ; riding predisposes
to, 14 ff; difficult in the water,
878 a 35 ; of fishes, a 39; why
pleasant, 878 b I ff. ; cools and
dries the stomach, b I7ff. ; those
who wish to pass urine cannot
have, b 33ff. ; men less capable
of, in summer than in winter,
879 a 26ff, 88o a iiff. ; why some
prefer an active, others a passive
part in, 879 a 36 ff. ; why a cause
of shame, 88o a 6ff. ; effect of

INDEX

abstinence from, 88o a 22ff. ; the
melancholic particularly addicted
to, 88o a 30 ff. ; desire for, stimu
lated by recollection, 886 a 33 ;
the beautiful as a stimulus to,
896 * 12 ff. ; effect upon offspring
of condition of parent at time of,
89i h 34ff. ; production of life
without, 892 a 23 ff.; more frequent
among tame than wild animals,
896 a 20 ; the intemperate in s.i.
called incontinent, 95o a i ; makes
men despondent, 95 5 a 26.

Sexual organ?, effect of fear upon
the, 948 h 10, 949 a 8.

Shadows, cast by sun, their increase
and decrease not uniform, 91 i a
14 ff. ; shortest at midday, a 34 ff. ;
longest at sunrise and sunset,
9i2 a 34ff. ; moon casts longer s.s
than sun, b 4ff. ; extremity of s.
trembles, 9i3 a 5 ff. ; no s. thrown
by the base of a bubble, a 19 ff. ;
of floating wood, a 23.

Shame, causes blushing, 9O3 a 3,
905 a 7 ; makes the ears red, 957 b
10, 96o a 36ff, 96i a 8, 31 ; s.
dwells in the eyes , 957 b n.

Sheep, milk of, 89i b 4 ; eyes of, far
apart, 892 b 13 ; wool of, 893" 13,
17, 36; Maynesian and Libyan,
896 a 26; prolific, 898^2.

Ships, seem more heavily laden in
harbour than out at sea, 93 i b
9 ff. ; travel more quickly towards
than from land, b 10 ff. ; sudden
disappearance of, at sea, b 39 ff. ;
shape of, 932 a 18.

Shivering, Problems connected with
Chill and, 887 a io-889 b 7.

Shivering, simultaneous with per
spiring, 878 a 6 ff. ; after sneezing,
887 b 35 ff., 963 a 33 ff. ; after pass
ing urine, 887 b 35, 888 b I, 963 a
33 ; caused both by hot and by
cold water, 888 a 32 ff. ; see also
Shuddering.

Short-sighted, the, write small,
958 a 35, b 34 ; screw up the eyes,
959 a 3 I hld objects near to the
eyes, b 39.

Shrewdness, meaning of the term,
91 7 a i ; to whom applied, 9i6 b 35.

Shrill, weeping a s. sound, 9Oo a
20 ff., b 7ff. ; voices shriller, at a
distance, 899 a 22 ff., 9oi a 20 ff,
in winter, 9O5 a 24 ff. ; s. voices

audible farther, 9O4 b 7 ff. ; see
also Voice, shrillness of.

Shrubs and Vegetables, Problems
concerning, 923 a 5~927 a 9.

Shuddering, causes of, 8S6 b 9ff,
964 b 32 ff. ; at the touch of others,
964 b 2 1 ff. ; after taking solid food,
96 s a 33 ff. ; see also Shivering.

Sibyls, 954 a 37-

Sight, long, in old age, 959 b 39 ; see
also Eyes, Short-sighted, Vision.

Silver, 864 a 34 ; purification of, 936 b
25 ff.

Sitting, makes some fat, others lean,
88s b i5ff.

Skin, effect of hot water on the,
936 b i2ff, 937 a loff. ; s.s for
holding liquid, 938 b 15, see also
Wine-skins; inflated s.s, pre
servation of food in, 93i a 39ff.,
939 b 12 ff, pain caused to limbs
enclosed in, 937 b 3iff, cause of
their floating, 939 a 33 ff.

Skull, 896 a 31 ; sutures in, a 35.

Sky, clearer at night than by day,

Slander of public official more

serious than of private persons,

952 b 28.
Sleep, perspiration more copious

during, 867 b 31 ff, 869* 13 ff ;

position of eyes during, 876 a

32 ff. ; easier if one lies on the
right side, 886 a 3 ; is absence of
movement, a 7 ; prevented by
cold, 887 b i5, 889 b 3; shortness
of, in animals, 894 a 2 1 ; induced
or prevented by reading, 9i6 b
2ff, 9i7 a i8ff. ; men in deep s.
see no visions, 956 b 39ff. ; sneez
ing never occurs during, 963 a 5 ff.

Smell, as a stimulus to sympathetic
action, 887 a ioff. ; see also
Odour.

Smoke, effect of, on the eyes, 896 b
8> 957 b 33> 959 3 5 odours are s.
or vapour, 9o7 a 29.

Sneezing, a turgid state necessary
for, 877 a 35 ; followed by shiver
ing, 887 b 35ff, 963 a 33ff- ; com
monest in man, 892 b 22ff, 897 a
i ff, 962 b S ff. ; cause of, 897 a 12,
963^ 7 ; stopped by rubbing the
eye, 957 a 3, 96i b 27fF., 962*
25 ff.; cause of s. twice, 96i b

33 ff. ; after looking at the sun,
96i b 36 ff. ; cures hiccups, 962 a

INDEX

I ff., 963 a 38 ff ; regarded as
divine, 962 a 2iff, 32 ff. ; a good
sign between midday and mid
night, 962 b 19 ff. ; difficult for the
old, b 28 ff. ; never occurs during
sleep, 9 63 a 5 ff

Snub-nose, cause of, 903 b 1 1 ff.

Socrates, a victim of melancholy,

Soda^86 3 b i7, SS7 b 7, 936 a 2.

Solstice, 862 b 8, 94i b 15, 20.

Soothsayers, 954 a 37.

Sores, treatment of, 86s ;i 25 ; on
head, 86i a 33, 9O9 a 35 ; on legs,
86i a 34, 99 a 36, (of eunuchs)
895 a 31 ; caused by exertion, 883 *
26; by black bile, 953 a 18, 954 a
26.

Sound, every s. is a breath, 886 b
15 ; is air set in motion, 899 a 34,
902 b i3, 920 b 4; refraction of,
899 a 25, b 22, 9oi b 19, 22, 9c>4 a
38, b 3o ; more audible at night,
899 a 19 ff, 903 a 7 ff. ; audibility
of, in buildings, b i3ff. ; can
penetrate through dense objects,
904 b 19 ff, 905 a 36 ff. ; travels less
far and more slowly than light,
904 b i6ff. ; not audible through
water, 90 5 b 10 ff. ; effect of a
number of persons making the
same s. simultaneously, 9O4 b
33fT. ? 9i7 b 2iff.

South wind, attracts clouds, 939 b
19 ff, 945 a 38 ff. ; does not occur
at fixed times, 94o a 35ff ; blows
after hoar-frost, b 8 ff. ; less
frequent than N. wind, 94 i a 27 ff. ;
in winter blows as much by night
as by day, a 31 ff. ; blows regularly
in the season of the dog-star,
a 37 ff, 944 a 4 ff ; periods of
the, 942 a 5 ff. ; causes evil odours,
a i6ff. ; rainy when it begins and
ends, a 29 ff. ; when weak, brings
clear weather, a 34 ff. ; why rainy,
943 a 5 ff. ; one of the most frequent
winds, 944 a 36 ff. ; makes the sea
blue, b 2iff. ; its effect on the
clouds, b 25 ff. ; weak when it
begins, strong when it ceases,
b 31 ff, 945 a 8 ff, 27 ff. ; makes
men heavy and weak, a i4ff. ;
does not blow in the maritime
parts of Egypt, a 20 ; if dry, causes
fever, 946 a 4 ff.

South-East wind (Eurus), why

rainy, 943* 5 ff. ; rises at dawn,
a i3; makes objects look larger,

946 a 33t
South-West wind (Lips), brings

rain at the Equinox, 942^25 ff. ;

naturally moist, b 33, 943 a 2 ; in

Egypt, 945 a 24-
Speech, effect of drunkenness upon,

87 5 b 19 ff. ; the mind is the source

of, b 3 1 ; many forms of human,

895 a 6; defined, a io; hesitation

in, 895 a is, 902*38, b 17, 903*7,

19, 905 a 16, 20, b 29 ; peculiar to

man, 899 a 2.
Spiders webs (gossamers), a sign

of wind, 947 a 33 ff.
Spine, 897 b 26.
Splenetic persons, have black scars,

89o a 10.
Sponge, 938 b 20 ; used to protect

the ears of divers, 96o b 15 ff.
Sponge-divers ; see Divers.
Spontaneous generation, 898 b 5.
Squills, 926 a 6, 19.
Squinting, 89& b 5.
Stammering, 902^ 24 ff.
Standing, less cold than running in

the winter, 888 b 2i.
Stars, are warm, 939 b 16 ; are cold,

according to the ancients, b 34 ;

shooting, a sign of wind, 942^

i6ff
Starvation, as a cure for disease,

859 a 7 ; swelling of the feet due

to, b 2ff.
Stature, effect of climate upon, 9<D9 b

15 ff.
Stomach, dissolvent power of the,

936 a 27.
Stones, dislodged by plants, 9o2 b

2 ; form more in hot than in cold

water, 93 7 a n ff.
Straw, effect on sound of spreading

s., 9oi b 30.
Strength, not communicable to

others, 95i a 5.
Strings, thinner give shriller note,

901 a i8; the lower s. gives the

note, 9i8 a 37 ff. ; tuning of, 919*

14 ff, 92o b 7ff. ; tight, give a

shrill note, 92o b 3.
Stucco, 899 b 22.

Suicide, after drinking, 955 a 8, 22.
Sulphur, 93 7 b 24, 28.
Sun, the, drunkards like the warmth

fj 875 b 5 ff., 34 ff. ; warmer to

stand than to sit in, 884 b II ff. ;

INDEX

a source of movement, 899 a 2i ;
disturbs the air in the daytime,
903 a 8 ; shadows cast by, do not
increase and decrease uniformly,
9ii a i4fL ; shapes formed by,
passing through quadrilaterals,
b 3 ff. ; reason of flat appearance
of, 9i2 a 2Sff. ; casts longest
shadows at sunrise and sunset,
and shortest at midday, a 34 ff. ;
casts shorter shadows than the
moon, b 4 ff. ; eclipse of, b II ; a
parhelion forms only at the side
of, b 27 ff. ; rising of, effect upon
the winds, 944 a 35 ff., 946 b 3ff.,
947 a 26 ff. ; looking at, causes
sneezing, 96i b 36ff. ; bleaches
wax and oil, but darkens the
flesh, 966 b 2iff, 96; b 23 ff. ; its
effects upon the flesh, 966 b 21 ff,
96; a 2off., b 24ff.

Sunset, signs of coming weather at,
94i a i ff.

Superparticular ratio, 920* 26, 92 i b
6.

Surgery, X cauterization, 863 a 10 ff. ;
X drugs, a i9ff. ; use of copper
instruments in, a 25 ff.

Sweat ; see Perspiration.

Swimming, easier in the sea, 933 a
9 ff. ; effect upon the bowels,
935 b 28ff.

Syllogism, 91 7 b 5.

Sympathetic Action, Problems con
nected ivith, 886 a 24-887 b 8.

Sympathy with suffering, cause of,
S87 a i5ff.

Symphonic, accompaniment, 91 8 b
30; notes, b 35.

Syracusan, 954 a 38.

Syria, 9o6 b 18, 9o8 a 14.

Tame, X wild, animals, 895 b 23 ff.

Taste, pleasures of, 949 b 6, 37.

Tears, hot and cold, 959 b 20 ff.

Teeth, 898 a 22, 26; set on edge,
886 b 12 ff. ; men with porous,
spongy teeth are short-lived,
8o.6 a 3off., 963 b i8ff. ; of Ethio
pians, 898 b 12 ; effect of figs upon,
93 i a 27 if. ; sensitive to cold, 963 b
22 ff, 26 ff. more numerous in
males than in females, b 20.

Temperament, Problems connected
with the effect of Locality on,
909 a u-9io b 9.

Temperament, persons of moist,

more affected by exertion, 883*
3 ff. ; persons of equable, feel
fatigue but throw it off, b 1 1 ff.

Temperance and Intemperance,
Continence and Incontinence^
Problems connected with, 949 a
21-950* 19.

Temperance, ill effects of a sudden
change to, 949 a 23 ff.

Temperate, association with the,
makes men t., 95i a 5-

Tens, counting in, 9io b 23 ff.

Terpander, 92o a i7.

Thapsia, 864 a 5, 89o b 7, 18, 25.

Theatrical artists, bad character of,
956 b iiff.

Theft, penalties for, 952 a 17 ff, 953 a
3ff.

Thighs, strain upon the, in descend
ing, 882 b 25ff, 883 a 9; on long
journeys, 882 b 37 ff. ; feel more
fatigue than the legs, 883 b 13 ff,
885 a 30 ff.

Thirst, caused by fear, 947 b 16,
94 8 a I, 7, b 13 ; less tolerable than
hunger, 949 b 26, 32.

Thracians, 91 i a 2.

Thriasian Plain, 942 a 19.

Thunderbolt, 937 b 26, 28.

Thyme, 925 a 8.

Tickling, felt most in the armpits
and the soles of the feet, g64 b
30 ff. ; a man cannot tickle
himself, 965 a n ff.; stimulates
laughter, a 16 ; the lips sensitive
to, a i8ff.

Tongue, the, effect of drunkenness
upon, 875 b i9ff. ; effect of cold
upon, 888 b 7 ff. ; of animals, 892
33 ff. ; effect of sour matter upon,
93 1 a 12 ; as an indication of
disease, 963 h 33 ff. ; of sheep,
b 35; coloration of, b 38, 964 a
4ff. ; becomes bitter but never
sweet, a i ff.

J^ouch, Problems connected with
the effect of, 964 b 20-965* 39.

Touch, the pleasures of, 949 b 6, 37.

Tragedies, early, writers of, pri
marily musicians, 920* II ; main
ly lyrical, a 1 3.

Tragic chorus ; see Chorus.

Trembling, of drunkards, 87 l a
27 ff, 874 b 22 ff. ; of shadows,
91 3 a 5 ff. ; from fear, 947 b 12 ff.,
948* 35 ff, " 6ff. ; see also Voice,
trembling of.

INDEX

Trite, 9i8 a l5, 920*17.

Troy, 916* 19.

Tug-of-war, 888*21.

Tunes running in the head , 9O2 a

30 ff.
Twins, difference of sex in, 894* 7 ff.

Unguents, 926*17; see also Per
fumes.

Unison, 9i8 b 8.
Unsymmetrical, appearance of the,

9i5 b 37ff-

Urethra, 895 1 9.

Urine, examination of, 865^ 6 ff. ;
incontinence of, 876* 15 ff. ; those
who wish to pass u. cannot have
sexual intercourse, 878 b 33 ; pass
ing of, as a result of sympathy,
886 a 26, 36, 887* 5, as a re
sult of fear, 94S b 36 ; odour of,
9<D7 b 2i ; shivering after passing,
887 b 35,888 b i, 963*33; flow of,
promoted by sweet-smelling seeds
and plants, 9c>7 b 3, 924 b 18 ff. ;
by garlic, 9O7 b 7, 908* 28, 949 b
6 ; by anise and wormwood, a 2.

Vapour baths, 867*29, 869*9,

b 20 ff.
Varicocele, prevents procreation,

878 b 36 ff. ; not found in eunuchs,

894 b 39-

Vegetables, Problems connected with
Shrubs and, 923* 5-927* 9.

Veins, swollen, 885 b 31.

Vinegar, 959 h 7, 14; a cure for in
flammation, 889 b i9; stops hic
cups, 96i b 20, 962* I, 963 b 6.

Violets, white, 909* I, 7.

Vipers, never tame, 895 b 26.

Vision, the, effects of drunkenness
upon, 872* 1 8 ff., b 3 ff., 874* 5 ff.,
875 b 9ff.; takes the form of a cone,
872*37, 9ii b 5, 1 6, 20; effect of
sexual excess upon, 876 b 24 ff. ;
cannot penetrate hard objects,
905* 35 ff, or porous objects, 939*
12 ; physical exercise detrimental
to, 958 b 28ff. ; green and yellow
the only colours beneficial to, 959*
24 ff. ; why improved by shading
the eyes, 960* 2 iff.; see also
Eyes, Sight.

Voice, Problems connected with the,
898 b 28-906* 20.

Voice, defined, 899* 22, 900* 34,
904*25, b 27, 948 b 27; man can

utter many v.s, 895* 5 ; animals
possess v. but not speech, 895*
18; travels in every direction,
899 b 35 ; comes to perfection late
in man, 905*30; v. and hearing
have the same source, 898 b 29,
31 ; loss of, 888* 8 ; more audible
below than above, 904* 23 ; higher
when echoed back, 918*35;
breaks on parhypate, 9i7 b 30 ff. ;
broken, after meals, 900* 17, of
drunkards, 9O4 b i ; deep, in
adults, 90o b 16, in winter, b 29,
901*1, 905 b 38, after drinking
and vomiting, 9co b 39 ; less
audible at a distance, 901* 7 ; of
males, b 28, 903* 28 ; of the
nervous, 9O2 b 36, 905* 5 ; of the
drunken, 905* 25 ; loud, of hot-
natured persons, 899* 10, after
eating leeks, o.O3 b 27 ; low, of
those who hesitate in speech,
903*38; rough, after sleepless
ness, 900* 10 ; shrillness of, 899*
22 ff., 900*22, 901*20, in child
ren, *32, 9oi b 24, in boys,
women, and eunuchs, 9oc b 15,
9oi b 24, 903*27ff, after violent
exertion or illness, 88o b 29, 901*
30 ff, due to weakness, 903*30,
of the frightened, 9O2 b 37, 905*6,
in winter, 905* 24 ; shriller at a
distance, 9OO*2off, b 7 ff ; shrill
v.s audible farther, 9O4 b 7ff. ;
trembling of, 9O2 b 30 ff., 906* 10,
948*35, b 7.

Vomiting, after perspiring, 868*
5 ff. ; caused by watery wine, 873 b
24 ff. ; a turgid state necessary
for, 877*25 ; cures fatigue, 88i a
12; the voice is deeper after,
901* i ; lightens the body, 965 b
29.

Votes, if the v.s are equal the de
fendant wins, 951* 10 ff., 952 b 36.

Vowels, 895* 10.

Walking, over level and uneven
ground compared, 88o b 15 ff,
88i b 18 ff., 883 a 22 ff, 885 a 14 ff. ;
fattens the legs, 88i b n ; short
distances, fatiguing, b 37ff, 884 b
8 ff. ; effect of violent w., 882*
29 ff. ; less liability to fall when
w. than when running, b 22 ff. ;
why easier than running, 883 b
37 ff.

INDEX

Wafer, Problems connected with
Hot, 936 a Ii-937 b 28 ; Salt, and
the sea, Problems connected with,
93* a 35-936 a io.

Water, effect upon health, 86o b
26 ff., 86 1 a I ff., a 10 ff. ; upon
colour of animals, 891^ 13 ff. ;
present in most foods, 86o b 35,
in bread, 92; a 30 ; becomes cor
rupt, 939 b 27 ; powers of satura
tion, 939* 29 ff. ; contact with,
does not moisten the air, 938 a
17 ff., 939 a i;ff. ; effect of drip
ping, 902 b i ; less white when in
motion, 934* 13 ff. ; more salty in
regions facing S., a 3off. ; tire-
heated more wholesome than sun-
heated, 937 a 34 ff., b 5 f. ; in wells,
temperature of, 936 a i6ff. ; boils
over more easily in winter, a 37 ;
boiling, temperature of vessels
containing, 936 a 32ff, b i3ff.,
no scum on, b 23 ff. ; cold, makes
a shriller sound than hot, 9oo 1
4ff, effect upon the fainting,
937 a 2 9 1 hot, causes wrinkles,
936 b 10 ff, 937 b 2, at Atarneus,
b 7, at Magnesia, b 7, n, stones
form in, a 1 1 ; see also Salt
Water.

Water-clock; see Clock.

Waves, only ripple in a confined
space, 93 i a 35 ff, 934 a 25 ff. ;
begin to move before the wind
reaches them, 93i a 38ff., 932 b
37 ff-) 934 b 4ff-5 an indication of
wind, 932 b 29; calm down more
slowly in the open sea, 933 b 4 ff.

Wax, bleached by the sun, 966 b

21.

Weals, Problems connected witJi

Bruises, Scars, and, 889 * 10-

8 9 i a s.

Weals, prevention of, 889 b loff.
Wealth, more often found in the

hands of the bad than of the

good, 95o 36ff.
W 7 eariness ; see Fatigue.
Weather, effect of, on disease, 859

21 ff.

Weights, held by jumpers, 88i h 4.

West wind, caused by the sinking
sun, 942 b 6 ; makes scent hard to
follow, b 13 ff. ; drives the largest
clouds, b 20 ff. ; brings fair
weather, 943 b 2i ff., 946 21 ff. ;
blows towards evening, 944 a

I off., 31 ff. ; gentle but cold, 946*
1 7 ff. ; its seasons, a 1 8 ff.

Wheat, 863 a 35 ff, 929 b 28 ; more
nourishing than barley, 92 7 a 17.

Wheaten-bread, 927^2.

Wild X tame, animals, 895 b 23 ff.,
896 a 20 ff. ; ;( cultivated, plants,
896 a 6 ff, 924 a 1 8 ff., 927 a 4 ff.

Wills, set aside in favour of claims
of birth, 95o b 5 ff.

Windpipe, 901 b 7, 14, 96o b 36.

Winds, Problems connected ivitJi
the, 94o a i6-947 b 9.

Winds, effect of, upon health and
disease, 859 a 9 ff, 862 a 17 ff,
26 ff.; coming w.s indicated by
waves, 932 b 29ff. ; blow cold in
early morning from rivers but
not from sea, 933 a 27 ff., 943 b
4 ff. ; alternating, cause of, 94o b
i6ff, come from the sea, b 2i ff.,
blow in bays, not in open sea,
945 a i ff. ; rise before eclipses,
942 a 22 ff. ; strongest as they end,
b 23 f. ; cause dryness, 943 a 28 ff. ;
change into their contraries or
those on their right, b 29 ff. ; effect
of sunrise on, 944 a 25 ff. ; source
of, b 4 ff. ; none on high mountains,
b 12 ff. ; due to motion caused by
heat, 945 b 8 ff. ; different w.s bring
rain in different places, 946 b
32 ff. ; in Arcadia, 947 a 15 ff. ;
last if they begin at dawn, a 25 ff. ;
see also East wind, North
wind, &c.

Wine and Drunkenness, Problems
connected with the drinking of,
87i a i-876 a 28.

Wine, contains heat, 87i a I, 39,
874 b 35; children dislike, 872*
2 ; the brave are fond of, 948*
13 ; has the same effects as black
bile, 953 a 34j unmixed, less
violent in its effects, 87i a 16 ff,
873 a 4ff, 874 a 28ff, fatal to the
lean, a 35 ff., to be taken with
fruit, 930 b 21 ff. ; sweet, effects of,
872 b 26 ff., 32 ff., 874 b 1 1 ff, those
who drink do not become drunk
ards, 875 b I ff. ; seems sweetest if
taken with barley-meal, 9?-9 a 3i;
causes both frenzy and stupefac
tion, 873 a 23 ff. ; effect on the
melancholic, a 32ff. ; watery,
causes vomiting, b 24ff. ; im
proves hesitation of speech, 9O3 b

INDEX

8 ff. ; causes lisping, b 25 ff. ;
yields up its odour more quickly
when diluted, 9c>7 b i3ff. ; effect
of marjoram upon, 926** 32 ff. ;
taste of, after eating rotten fruit,
93o b 5 ft, and sour fruit, 93l a 6 ff.

Wine-skins, two, one double the
size of the other, give an accord
in the octave, 923* 2 ff.

Wisdom, Problems connected with
Priidence, Intelligence, and, 953 a

S-957 a 35-

Wisdom, superior, of those who live
in warm regions, 9io a 26 ff. ;
practical, of man, 955 b 4fL; in
creases with age, b 22 ff. ; no
prizes offered for, 956 b 1 6 ff.

Woman, murder of a, more terrible
than of a man, 951*11 ff. ; see
also Females.

Words, uttered by man only, 905*

21.

W 7 ormwood, 949* 2.

Wounds heal more readily in the

young, 96i a 5.
W 7 restling-school, theft from, 952*

18.
Wrinkles, caused by hot water,

936 b ioff., 937 a 2ff.

Yawning, 96i a 37ff. ; why infectious,
886 a 24ff, 31 ff, 88; a 4ff. ; pre
vents hearing, 9O2 b 9 ff, 9O4 a
l6ff.

Yellow objects, beneficial to the
sight, 959 a 24ff.

Zephyr ; see West wind.

Printed in England at the OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
By John Johnson Printer to the University

B 407 .86 1910 v.7 SMC

Ar istot le.

The works of Aristotle

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